Ankeny Fanatic

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Archives for October 2024

‘It’s one of the best feelings ever’: No. 2 Jaguars are headed back to Coralville

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) By no means is the Ankeny Centennial volleyball program charting unfamiliar territory. But that doesn’t mean the feeling of winning a region championship and punching its ticket back to the Class 5A state tournament isn’t still one of the greatest feelings on the planet. “Honestly, it’s one of the best feelings ever,” … [Read more...] about ‘It’s one of the best feelings ever’: No. 2 Jaguars are headed back to Coralville

‘It’s just really special’: Hawkettes sweep Iowa City High, earn another trip to state

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The players on the Ankeny volleyball team aren't just teammates. They're also best friends--and perhaps that's a big part of their success. The third-ranked Hawkettes advanced to the state tournament for the seventh consecutive year by sweeping No. 11 Iowa City High, 25-15, 25-10, 27-25, in a Class 5A regional final on Tuesday at Ankeny. "We're all … [Read more...] about ‘It’s just really special’: Hawkettes sweep Iowa City High, earn another trip to state

‘They’ve really changed the program’: Henkes joins Ankeny parade to Sioux Falls

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Ankeny's Caden Henkes and Ankeny Centennial's Chase Kluver both wear a No. 5 jersey for their respective football teams. At least one of them will have to wear a different number next season. Henkes, a senior running back, has verbally committed to play for the University of Sioux Falls. He becomes the fourth player from Ankeny to commit to the … [Read more...] about ‘They’ve really changed the program’: Henkes joins Ankeny parade to Sioux Falls

Eagles sweep Sigourney, will play SE Warren for another trip to 1A state tourney

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It's hard to prepare for the aggressiveness of Ankeny Christian Academy's serves. Just ask the Sigourney volleyball players. The top-ranked Eagles pounded 20 more aces and rolled to a 25-8, 25-15, 25-9 victory over visiting Sigourney in a Class 1A regional semifinal on Monday. "Our serving was solid again," said ACA coach Michele Quick, whose team … [Read more...] about Eagles sweep Sigourney, will play SE Warren for another trip to 1A state tourney

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Anna Weathers, Ankeny Christian volleyball

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Senior Anna Weathers helped the top-ranked Ankeny Christian Academy volleyball team to a sweep over visiting Melcher-Dallas in a Class 1A regional quarterfinal on Wednesday. She had five kills in five total attacks for a perfect 1.000 hitting percentage and also recorded six digs. Weathers ranks third on the team with 226 kills and is hitting .416 on the … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Anna Weathers, Ankeny Christian volleyball

‘I thought we raced hard’: Ankeny places 4th at CIML Conference swim meet

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With only three weeks left in the season, the Ankeny girls' swimming team headed to the Waukee Natatorium on Saturday for the CIML Conference meet. The sixth-ranked Hawkettes finished in the middle of the pack. Ankeny placed fourth in the seven-team field behind No. 1 Dowling Catholic, No. 2 Waukee Northwest and No. 10 Waukee. "I was really … [Read more...] about ‘I thought we raced hard’: Ankeny places 4th at CIML Conference swim meet

Jaguars rout Urbandale on Senior Night, earn No. 7 seed for Class 5A playoffs

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) All season long, the Ankeny Centennial football team has made a living running the ball. But on Friday, the Urbandale J-Hawks caught a glimpse of just how dangerous the Jaguars' passing game can be. Centennial closed out its regular season and gave its seniors plenty to smile about after recording dominant offensive and … [Read more...] about Jaguars rout Urbandale on Senior Night, earn No. 7 seed for Class 5A playoffs

Hawks weather lightning delay, gear up for playoffs with rout over C.R. Washington

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The Ankeny football team was hoping to get an extra day of rest prior to the start of the postseason. But those plans went out the window after Thursday's game against Cedar Rapids Washington was suspended due to lightning at Kingston Stadium. After a long night on the bus, the Hawks were forced to return to Cedar Rapids on Friday afternoon--and they … [Read more...] about Hawks weather lightning delay, gear up for playoffs with rout over C.R. Washington

Jags, Hawks likely to host doubleheader in first round of Class 5A football playoffs

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It appears likely that Ankeny and Ankeny Centennial will host a doubleheader in the opening round of the Class 5A football playoffs. Both teams closed out the regular season on Friday with impressive victories. The Jaguars (7-2) rolled to a 49-7 win over visiting Urbandale, while the Hawks (5-4) defeated Cedar Rapids Washington, 56-0, in a game that … [Read more...] about Jags, Hawks likely to host doubleheader in first round of Class 5A football playoffs

‘We had good tempo’: Jaguars roll past Urbandale, will host Ottumwa Tuesday

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Regional play has finally arrived, and the second-ranked Ankeny Centennial volleyball team couldn’t have asked for a much better start to its postseason run. The top-seeded Jaguars made quick work of CIML Conference foe Urbandale during a Class 5A Region 1 semifinal on Thursday, sweeping the J-Hawks by scores of 25-10, 25-9, … [Read more...] about ‘We had good tempo’: Jaguars roll past Urbandale, will host Ottumwa Tuesday

‘We had great energy’: Hawkettes sweep C.R. Jefferson, will host City High next

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There were a lot of mismatches on Thursday in the semifinal round of the Class 5A regional volleyball tournaments. One of the lopsided affairs came at Ankeny, where the third-ranked Hawkettes rolled to a 25-10, 25-10, 25-18 victory over Cedar Rapids Jefferson. The J-Hawks finished the season with a 7-28 record. "We had great energy and controlled our … [Read more...] about ‘We had great energy’: Hawkettes sweep C.R. Jefferson, will host City High next

ACA boys’ cross country team wins district title, qualifies for state along with Oshirak

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The sixth-ranked Ankeny Christian Academy boys' cross country team advanced to the Class 1A state meet by winning a district title on Thursday at Jewell. The Eagles placed five runners in the top 12 and scored 28 points. No. 14 Baxter was the runner-up with 101 points and also qualified for state. ACA was led by junior Alex Davis, who took second in … [Read more...] about ACA boys’ cross country team wins district title, qualifies for state along with Oshirak

Ankeny divers ‘have room to improve’ following CIML Conference meet

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The Ankeny divers continued to make some progress while competing in the CIML Conference meet on Thursday at Waukee. Gabby Gagne placed 15th in the 11-dive varsity competition with 288.80 points. Teammates Kambelle Subbert and Isla Corron finished right behind Gagne, placing 16th and 17th with 279.40 and 278.25 points, respectively. Holli Hetzer of … [Read more...] about Ankeny divers ‘have room to improve’ following CIML Conference meet

Zuber leads Hawks to district crown; Hawkettes also qualify for state meet

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The Ankeny cross country teams extended their streaks of consecutive state-meet appearances on Wednesday. The boys' squad won a Class 4A district meet at Southeast Polk to earn their fourth straight trip to state. The ninth-ranked Hawks scored 48 points, while No. 14 Indianola (69 points) and No. 11 Johnston (78 points) also advanced to … [Read more...] about Zuber leads Hawks to district crown; Hawkettes also qualify for state meet

Jaguars win 4th straight SQM, advance to state along with Centennial boys’ duo

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The seniors on the Ankeny Centennial girls' cross country team are used to winning. The Jaguars did it again on Wednesday. Fourth-ranked Centennial easily won a Class 4A regional meet at Marshalltown, scoring a total of 29 points. No. 10 Dallas Center-Grimes (48 points) and No. 15 Davenport Central (74 points) also advanced to state. "It's really a … [Read more...] about Jaguars win 4th straight SQM, advance to state along with Centennial boys’ duo

‘It was pretty much a serving game’: ACA racks up 23 aces, sweeps Melcher-Dallas

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The first step toward a third consecutive Class 1A state championship proved to be an easy one for the Ankeny Christian Academy volleyball team. The top-ranked Eagles cruised to a 25-3, 25-15, 25-5 victory over visiting Melcher-Dallas in a regional quarterfinal on Wednesday. It was their second win over the Saints, who finished the season with a 9-13 … [Read more...] about ‘It was pretty much a serving game’: ACA racks up 23 aces, sweeps Melcher-Dallas

Ankeny assistant Saladino hired to take over Hawkettes’ softball program

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Ankeny assistant softball coach Sarah Saladino has been hired to take over the Hawkettes' program. She replaces head coach Dave Bingham, who recently announced his resignation after guiding Ankeny to a 293-188 record and four trips to the state tournament over the last 12 seasons. "There's a lot of great things that coach Bingham has put in place," … [Read more...] about Ankeny assistant Saladino hired to take over Hawkettes’ softball program