The biggest win of the season for the Ankeny girls’ swimming team came on its Senior Night.
Seventh-ranked Ankeny won eight of the 12 events, including all three relays, and posted a 95-91 victory over No. 4 Johnston in a CIML Conference dual meet on Tuesday at Trail Point Aquatics Center. It was the first conference win for the Hawkettes, who improved their records to 1-3 in the league and 4-4 overall.
“What a crazy exciting meet tonight!” said Ankeny coach Dustin Rhoads, whose team had not competed since dropping a 96-90 decision at Cedar Falls on Sept. 21. “Obviously, it was a special occasion as we honored our 12 awesome seniors, and it was our Pink Out night to honor and support cancer patients, survivors and those we have lost.”
Ankeny won even though the Dragons swept the top three places in both the 500 freestyle and the diving competition. The Hawkettes sealed the victory with a 1-3 finish in the final event, the 400 freestyle relay.
The foursome of Sophie Loeffler, Alexis Hergenreter, Anja Peck and Josie Parton won the race in a time of 3:41.65. Ankeny’s “B” relay of Lauren Reimer, Paige Spoelstra, Leah Schafer and Lydia Crabb took third in 3:56.02.
Parton, Peck and Reimer were among the seniors who were honored.
“There’s something magical about Senior Night, being at home against a ranked team and competing for something bigger than yourself,” Rhoads said. “This is what high school sports are all about! The meet was back and forth the whole way. The girls refused to lose or give in and found a way to get it down to the last relay, which was my goal when I put our lineup together. Even with us trailing by two points going into it, I was very confident in the relays that were bringing us home in that last event.”
Ankeny got off to a good start, winning the 200 medley relay in 1:52.14. That team consisted of Parton, Peck, Loeffler and Gracie Lindaman.
Loeffler and Lindaman also swam on the winning 200 freestyle relay. They teamed up with Kyra Zinn and Hergenreter to win that race in 1:42.49.
Loeffler and Parton each had four wins on the night. Loeffler’s other victory came in the 100 butterfly, which she won in a time of 1:01.30.
Parton captured the 100 freestyle in 55.11 seconds. She later took the 100 backstroke in 1:01.15.
Peck won the 200 individual medley in 2:13.12. She was the runner-up in the 100 breaststroke, posting a time of 1:08.20.
Lindaman took the 50 freestyle in 25.54 seconds. She also finished third in the 100 freestyle in 56.39.
Hergenreter added a pair of second-place finishes. She posted times of 2:03.50 in the 200 freestyle and 1:02.27 in the butterfly.
“I’m just so dang proud and happy for these kids,” Rhoads said. “I’ve put them through a lot because I know the talent and potential they have, and I know what it takes to be successful in this sport! It’s a lot of hard work and tough days. It took every single person on the roster tonight to get the win. They all made an impact on the meet in some way!”
Ankeny will be back in its home pool on Thursday, hosting a non-conference dual meet against Indianola.
“I look forward to continuing to build off this momentum and the confidence our girls have gained from this team result and their performances,” Rhoads said. “If people didn’t believe before, I hope they do now! We are only going to keep getting better and faster!”
