It’s been a smooth transition onto the Ankeny girls’ basketball team for former Valley player Reagan Baldwin.
The junior forward scored nine points on Monday to help the eighth-ranked Hawkettes to a 50-36 victory in a non-conference game at Des Moines Christian.
“I’m having a lot of fun playing with everyone,” said Baldwin.
Baldwin has averaged nine points per game in Ankeny’s 3-0 start. She leads the team with seven 3-point goals.
Baldwin had a pair of treys in the first 3 minutes as the Hawkettes jumped out to an 8-2 lead. She hit another 3-pointer midway through the third quarter to extend the margin to 34-19.
“It was a pretty easy transition coming here,” said Baldwin, who went 3-of-5 from behind the arc. “It’s nice when you have so much talent around you. We’re all out there feeding the ball to each other, and we’re all just working together.”
Baldwin joined a lineup that already featured a trio of double-digit scorers. Jayla Williams led the way on Monday with a double-double, racking up 14 points and 10 rebounds.
Savannah Gage made two 3-pointers and scored all 12 of her points in the first half. She also dished out six assists.
Ainsley Kiene added 11 points, five of them in the fourth quarter.
“When we have balance, we’ll be consistent,” said Ankeny coach Nate Tobey. “It’s great to see multiple people knocking down shots. We missed a lot of shots tonight, or we would have been even more balanced. But we’re right where we need to be after three games, and we’re looking forward to the next chapter.”
Des Moines Christian (0-2) pulled to within 15-11 on a trey by Reagan Zimmer early in the second quarter, but the Hawkettes then closed the half with a 12-2 run to build a 27-13 advantage. Jade Moser scored off a rebound in the final seconds to cap the flurry.
Addy Oetker had 10 points to lead the Lions, who dropped a 48-41 decision at ADM in their season opener on Nov. 22. She also had seven rebounds and five steals.
Oetker went 3-of-3 from the field and 4-of-4 at the free-throw line, but her teammates combined to make just 9-of-32 shots (28.1 percent).
“They play really hard, and they’ve gotten a lot better since their first game,” Tobey said of the Lions. “They just missed a lot of shots tonight that they made in that first game, and they’ll be a major contender in their conference and then to advance to the state tournament again this year.”
Monday’s game was the start of a busy week for Ankeny, which will travel to No. 9 Valley (1-0) on Tuesday for a CIML Conference game. The Hawkettes will then host another conference showdown Friday against No. 3 Ankeny Centennial (1-0).
“It’s just good to be on the court and competing,” Tobey said. “There were some things we were frustrated with tonight, but overall it’s another step in the right direction and now our season takes another turn starting (Tuesday).”
Valley opened its season on Nov. 26 with a 60-45 victory over No. 10 Waukee. Ashlee Brown led the Tigers with 17 points.
The Hawkettes won both meetings against Valley during the regular season last year, but the Tigers then avenged those losses with a 39-36 victory in a Class 5A regional final.
“It’s an exciting opportunity,” Tobey said. “It’s a great way to start our conference season, but it’s just one of many great teams we’re going to play against this season. They’ll provide a great test for us.”
Baldwin, who played in four games for Valley last year, will get a chance to face her former teammates.
“I’m just going to come out and play hard, and we’re coming for a win,” she said.
