NEWS CHRONICLE PHOTOS BY STEVE BRANT – STC sophomores (left to right) Brylee Nelson, Maylee Rucker, Scout Ridout, and Sydney Arp gathered for a picture at last week's state track and field meet in Des Moines

DES MOINES — STC’s Scout Ridout opened some eyes at the 2026 state track and field meet. Competing in four different events in Des Moines last week, Ridout’s performance was highlighted by an impressive 3rd place finish in the 100 meter hurdles.

Ridout came into the race with the third-seeded time among 24 runners in the event in Class 3A.

But in the preliminary races on Friday afternoon, May 22, she ran the second-fastest time of 15.08. Ridout, along with the rest of the top eight finishers in the prelims, made the 100 meter hurdles final held on Saturday.

“In the prelims, I was mainly focused on running a clean race,” she said afterwards. “When I crossed the finish line I felt really good about the race and my time.”

This set Ridout up for a legitimate shot at a high-placing finish in the event final.

The four STC girl athletes who qualified for the state meet gathered at the pep rally before they left for Des Moines. They are (left to right) sophomores Maylee Rucker, Scout Ridout, Sydney Arp, and Brylee Nelson.

“For the finals, I was a little more nervous. I knew I needed to get out of the blocks well and just focus on my own race — not on the others around me,” she said.

In the finals, Ridout ran a personal-best time of 14.74 to secure third place. She finished behind two seniors — Elise Coghlan of ADM (14.20) and Renae Wilson of Decorah (14.69). Her third place finish is the highest individual finish for a STC female athlete at the state meet since JoJo Tyynismaa’s championship in the 400 hurdles in 2022. Ridout’s time also places her quite close to the school-record of 14.60 set by Tyynismaa in 2022.

“I’m very proud of my third place finish,” Ridout said. “It is a huge accomplishment.”

Ridout also competed in the open 100 and 200. Though she did not qualify for the finals in either event, she ran personal-best times in both: 12.83 in the 100 and 25.94 in the 200.

In her final event of the week, Ridout appeared alongside three fellow sophomores in the 4×100 relay — an exciting group of runners who had success all season long. Joined by Brylee Nelson, Sydney Arp, and Maylee Rucker, the foursome started by competing in the preliminary races on Friday evening, May 22. The team ran a time of 50.94 which missed the finals of the 4×100 held on Saturday. Overall, the performance was good for 23rd place in Class 3A.

“I was super excited to run the 4×100 with Sydney, Maylee, and Brylee,” Ridout said. “We worked hard all season on improving our time and we knew we had a good opportunity at state. Unfortunately, we didn’t quite meet our goal but I’m looking forward to all of us returning next year and working even harder.”

One of the goals Ridout refers to is the relay team’s ongoing pursuit of the school record. The 4×100 record is 50.01 set in 2016 by Shae Slaven, Lauren Yuska, Allison Yuska, and Belle Tyynismaa. This year’s sophomore squad came as close as 50.55 on May 14 at the state qualifying meet in Mount Vernon.

With the completion of the state meet, a successful season wraps up for the STC girls track and field team.

“I am super thankful for (Head Coach Emily) Chyma, Coach Tapia, and Coach Eick,” Ridout said. “They put in so much time and made the season very fun.”

When asked to look ahead to next year, Ridout spoke of the goals for her and her teammates.

“I want to start by working hard in the off season — training and getting my nutrition right,” she said. “And when the season starts next year, we are going to go after those school records.”