When the Ankeny Centennial volleyball team opens its season on Aug. 27, the Jaguars will do so in unprecedented fashion.
Centennial will be among four teams competing in the Marj White Classic hosted by Valley. The tournament has traditionally been held in the Tigers’ Bill Coldiron Fieldhouse, but this year’s event has been moved outdoors to Valley Stadium.
“It came about in late spring,” said Centennial coach Jessica Rinehart. “Valley reached out and asked if we wanted to be a part of it. I figured high school volleyball is for making memories so I wanted to give our girls an opportunity to do something they might not ever get to do again.
“Hopefully, it’s something they’ll look back on as a core memory,” she added.
The event will feature four of the state’s top teams–Centennial, Valley, Waukee and Waukee Northwest–playing on two courts. The Jaguars will face Northwest in a rematch of last year’s Class 5A championship match at 7:45 p.m., then will meet Waukee at 9.