The eighth-ranked Ankeny girls’ basketball team traveled to Valley on Friday for its regular-season finale and handed the No. 9 Tigers a damaging loss.
An injury to standout post player Elise Jaeger could spell even more trouble for Valley with postseason play starting next week.
Jaeger, a Northern Iowa recruit, scored 10 points before leaving the game about 1 minute into the third quarter. The Tigers held a 29-26 lead when she was helped off the court, and Ankeny went on to post a 53-46 victory.
Jaeger, who erupted for 30 points in a win over the Hawkettes last year, averages 14.1 points and 9.0 rebounds. She was on crutches afterwards.
“This is big for our postseason hopes,” said Ankeny coach Nate Tobey. “I do feel bad for Elise–what a terrible time for a senior to go down. She was about to (score) her 1,000th (career) point, and she was playing great in that game. You don’t want to win that way at all, but I’m glad our girls figured some things out down the stretch.
“Best wishes to her, and I hope it’s a quick recovery,” he added.
The win allowed Ankeny to finish fifth in the CIML Conference. The Hawkettes improved to 7-9 in the league and 12-9 overall, while Valley’s records are now 6-10 and 11-10.
Ankeny posted a 55-50 triumph over the Tigers last month, but Friday’s rematch was an opportunity for Valley to earn a split and potentially another home game against the Hawkettes in a Class 5A Region 8 final on Feb. 20. Now, if the two teams meet again, the game will be played at Ankeny.
“We really just wanted to focus on this game, and a lot can happen in the first couple of rounds (of regional play),” Tobey said. “We’re really focused on Cedar Rapids Kennedy or Waterloo West now, but it’s great to know that if we’re fortunate enough to get to the regional final, it will be at home. We love playing in our gym, and we feel that gives us the best chance to win.”
Savannah Gage led Ankeny with 20 points and three steals. She scored nine of her points in the fourth quarter as the Hawkettes erased a 40-36 deficit.
“We were really just focused on the game and playing hard,” said Gage. “It’s great momentum going into the postseason.”
The Hawkettes opened the final period with a 15-2 run. Karsen Jacks scored on a bank shot with 4 minutes 28 seconds left to break a 42-42 tie, then added another basket off a rebound shortly thereafter.
Gage followed with a driving layup and a 3-point goal to seal the win.
“Would this be the first time we’ve hosted (a regional final)?” Gage asked. “That’s great. I’m really excited to keep playing and just compete.”
Ankeny’s prospects for hosting the regional final looked dim in the first half, when Valley built a 25-15 lead. But the Hawkettes closed the half with a 9-2 run to cut the gap to 27-24.
Ankeny’s Ainsley Kiene had 13 of her 17 points in the first half, including a trio of treys. She then scored the Hawkettes’ first four points of the third quarter.
Jaeger suffered her injury when Kiene was fouled on a drive to the basket.
“Elise is a great player,” Gage said. “I hope she’s ok, but we’re definitely going to try to prepare for her if we see them again in the regional final.”
After Gage scored four straight points to give Ankeny a 32-29 lead, Valley responded with an 11-4 run without its best player. Avery Moon capped the spurt with a pair of baskets.
Ashlee Brown led the Tigers with 12 points. Moon finished with 11.
“I’ve seen that happen a lot when there’s an injury like that. You know, the team with the injury kind of rallies and people move out of their (normal) roles and do a great job with that,” Tobey said. “That’s really what they did, and we just kept fighting. We had different people contribute offensively down the stretch, and that was huge for us.”
Jacks scored six of her 11 points in Ankeny’s fourth-quarter rally. She also dished out four assists.
Jayla Williams started the Hawkettes’ run with a layup and finished with five points. She also grabbed a game-high eight rebounds and had two blocks.
The Hawkettes will host Cedar Rapids Kennedy (7-14) or Waterloo West (9-13) in a regional semifinal on Saturday at 7 p.m.
