(Story by Stephen McDaniel)
Just a few days ago, the Ankeny Centennial girls’ basketball team struggled to get shots to fall in a 16-point loss to second-ranked Waukee Northwest.
The No. 14 Jaguars had no such issues Tuesday night against visiting Urbandale.
Centennial connected on its first six shots of the game and proceeded to blow out the J-Hawks, 71-26, to complete a sweep of the season series.
“It was a good night,” said junior guard Lizzie Beam, who poured in a career-high 27 points. “Our team was playing really well, and I love it because it shows how much we’ve grown up this season.”
Beam immediately set the tone for the night as she made the Jaguars’ first three baskets of the game. That was followed by a Faith Perpich 3-pointer and a Lydia Michel layin before Beam scored on a drive to the hoop.
Following some free throws and a bucket from senior Rylyn Boeding, Beam knocked down her second triple of the quarter and scored a sixth basket for 14 first-quarter points while going 6-of-6 from the field and 2-of-2 from behind the arc.
“My shot felt good,” Beam said. “I was driving and my teammates were helping set me up.”
Perpich capped off the period with a 3-pointer that gave the Jaguars a 26-11 lead.
Urbandale tried to get some momentum in the second quarter, but an 11-0 run from Beam, Perpich and Michel had the Jaguars up by nearly 25 points going into halftime.
Centennial came out in the second half just as hot as the Jaguars immediately went on a 13-0 run.
Perpich opened the run with a bucket and her third 3-pointer of the night, Beam and Mylie Hatfield added to it from the free-throw line, and Nyah Weger ended the run by knocking down her second of three 3-pointers on the night.
“We came out really strong, and I think that boosted our confidence as we played the rest of the game,” said Centennial coach Chris Harken. “One thing we maybe haven’t been able to do a lot of these games is play a complete game. I’m proud of the girls for their effort.”
Beam added two baskets at the end of the quarter to complete her scoring before the Jaguars turned to the bench in the final period. She went 10-of-11 from the field, including 3-of-4 from 3-point range.
Senior guard Maizie Smith returned to action after missing the last seven games due to a toe injury. She contributed eight points in the second half on 3-of-6 shooting.
“It was a lot of fun after a lot of hard work that I had to put in to get back,” Smith said. “It was good to see some of that hard work show on the court.”Smith had scored a career-high 19 points in the Jaguars’ 60-46 win at Urbandale on Dec. 12. Her first points since that matchup came when she scored through a foul and then converted the ensuing free throw in the third quarter.Smith added a second basket and knocked down a 3-pointer in the final period.
“It felt amazing (scoring the first basket),” Smith said. “I was kind of surprised that it went in. I didn’t really see what was happening, but it was really cool to hear the crowd when it went in and I didn’t know it did.”
Centennial shot 60.5 percent for the game (26-of-43) while holding Urbandale to just 25 percent shooting (7-of-28) and forcing the J-Hawks into 20 turnovers. The Jaguars also made 10-of-19 attempts from behind the arc (52.6 percent).
Perpich finished with 15 points and two steals, going 6-of-8 from the field. Weger added nine points on 3-of-5 shooting from deep.
Boeding grabbed six rebounds, helping her team to a 26-13 advantage on the boards. Michel dished out three assists.
The win improved Centennial to 5-6 in the CIML Conference and 6-7 overall. It was the fifth straight loss for the J-Hawks, whose records dropped to 1-9 and 2-12.
The Jaguars will travel to Dowling Catholic on Friday for another conference game against the No. 3 Maroons, who are 8-2 in the league and 13-2 overall after routing No. 4 Valley, 79-41, on Tuesday.
Dowling won the first matchup at Centennial, 79-38, on Dec. 9.
“We just go with the philosophy of ‘one game at a time, one day at a time,’” Harken said. “So continue to improve even just a little bit every single game. Even if we have a step back, it’s just one game and we will continue to work and strive to be better in the next one.”
