It was a repeat win for Normangee senior Drew Stewart
2026 UIL Track and Field State Championships
The UIL 2A girls' 100-meter hurdles final was set with defending state champion Drew Stewart of Normangee once again standing as the athlete to beat. After winning the 2025 title in 14.50 with a strong tailwind, Stewart entered her senior season determined to close out her career with another dominant performance. Although Amber Elkins' long-standing 2A state meet record of 14.19 from 2009 remained one of the toughest marks in the classification, Stewart's regional qualifying time of 14.50 made her the heavy favorite entering the championship race.
From the start, Stewart looked in complete control. She was first to the opening hurdle and immediately established a slight advantage over the field with her explosive start and clean rhythm between barriers. But the race tightened quickly as Lovelady senior Maddie Ray, last year's runner-up, began applying pressure around hurdle three from lane two. At the same time, Ropesville Ropes sophomore Adalyn Falls surged strongly from the outside lanes and emerged as another serious challenger entering the final hurdles.
UIL 2A Girls 100-Meter Hurdles
Despite the pressure building around her, Stewart never lost composure. Maintaining excellent technique and turnover through the closing stages, the Normangee senior pulled away over the final hurdles and sprinted to her second consecutive state championship in a wind-aided 14.05 (+3.4). Although the tailwind prevented the performance from counting as an official record, the mark still stood as one of the fastest all-conditions performances in classification history and surpassed the long-standing 2A state meet standard under all conditions.
Behind Stewart, Falls delivered a breakthrough performance to finish second in 14.33, while Ray earned another state medal with a third-place finish in 14.42. Falls City senior Haley Gordon and Ballinger's Ashtyn Wilson rounded out the top five in a race where five athletes broke 15 seconds. In the end, Stewart once again proved herself as the class of the field, capping her high school hurdles career with another commanding championship performance.
It was a repeat win for Normangee senior Drew Stewart
2026 UIL Track and Field State Championships
The UIL 2A girls' 100-meter hurdles final was set with defending state champion Drew Stewart of Normangee once again standing as the athlete to beat. After winning the 2025 title in 14.50 with a strong tailwind, Stewart entered her senior season determined to close out her career with another dominant performance. Although Amber Elkins' long-standing 2A state meet record of 14.19 from 2009 remained one of the toughest marks in the classification, Stewart's regional qualifying time of 14.50 made her the heavy favorite entering the championship race.
From the start, Stewart looked in complete control. She was first to the opening hurdle and immediately established a slight advantage over the field with her explosive start and clean rhythm between barriers. But the race tightened quickly as Lovelady senior Maddie Ray, last year's runner-up, began applying pressure around hurdle three from lane two. At the same time, Ropesville Ropes sophomore Adalyn Falls surged strongly from the outside lanes and emerged as another serious challenger entering the final hurdles.
