Only one stroke separated the Ankeny and Ankeny Centennial girls’ golf teams at the conclusion of the Jaguar Invitational on Monday at Briarwood Golf Club.
The Hawkettes placed seventh in the 12-team field. They posted a 394 total.
“We had a good day!” said Ankeny coach Kelley Emke. “Ultimately, right now our growth is measured in how we come back from hard holes and less in the team score, but it was tight competition for third (place) today!”
While this was Ankeny’s third meet of the season, Centennial was among the teams who were competing for the first time. The Jaguars placed eighth with a 395 on their home course.
“There were a lot of highs and lows today!” said Centennial coach Marty Kiepe. “When you look at the scoreboard eighth out of 12 isn’t quite where we pictured ourselves going into today. When you peel it back, we only finished 12 shots out of third, and we know we left more than that out there today.”
Pleasant Valley easily won the team title for the second straight year. The Spartans shot a 301 to finish 27 strokes ahead of runner-up Gilbert, which won the meet from 2021-24.
Dallas Center-Grimes was a distant third with a 383. Valley and Des Moines Roosevelt each shot a 387, and Johnston finished with a 391.
Cate Trewet fired a 92 to lead Centennial.
“Cate got off to a slow start on No. 1, but responded well with back-to-back birdies on 2 and 3,” Kiepe said.
Trewet finished one stroke ahead of Aubree Moeller, who led Ankeny with a 93. Gabby Haga shot a 96 for the Hawkettes.
“Gabby and Aubree played consistently and kept great attitudes even with some tough holes,” Emke said.
Madalyn Ross, Ankeny’s No. 1 player, carded a 98. Her score was matched by Centennial’s Kyler Jones, who was making her varsity debut.
“Kyler had a smile for 18 holes today,” Kiepe said. “Her goal for the year was to break 100 in a meet, and we checked that off the list right away.”
Two other newcomers also had counting scores for the Jaguars. Gretta Borich fired a 100, and Madi Trosper finished with a 105.
Centennial’s Teagan Skinner shot a 111. Emma Bisgard added a 120.
“Overall, I’m very happy with our group today,” Kiepe said. “It’s hard to flip that competitive switch back on, and for our first time out I think the girls answered the call.”
Catherine Nelson provided Ankeny’s fourth score with a 107. Lydia Gerety shot a 129 for the Hawkettes.
The Jaguars will face Dowling Catholic and Johnston in a CIML Conference triangular meet on Wednesday at Blank Golf Course. The Maroons also played in Monday’s meet, finishing ninth with a 411.
Centennial will then head to Otter Creek on Thursday for the Ankeny Invitational, which will be hosted by the Hawkettes.
