Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Dan Holm

Regional volleyball pairings announced: Jags, Hawkettes, Eagles to start at home

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The regional volleyball pairings were announced on Thursday by the Iowa Girls' High School Athletic Union. As expected, both Ankeny Centennial and Ankeny earned No. 1 seeds in Class 5A, meaning that the Jaguars and Hawkettes will only have to win two matches--both of them at home--to advance to the state tournament in Coralville. Second-ranked … [Read more...] about Regional volleyball pairings announced: Jags, Hawkettes, Eagles to start at home

‘Iowa Central felt like home’: Centennial’s Bartine commits to play for Tritons

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Another Ankeny Centennial softball player has made her college decision. Senior outfielder Lauren Bartine has verbally committed to play for Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge. "I looked at a few other schools, and it was definitely a tough decision. Everyone had so much to offer," said Bartine. "However, Iowa Central felt like … [Read more...] about ‘Iowa Central felt like home’: Centennial’s Bartine commits to play for Tritons

‘I thought we played some good ball’: Jags avoid letdown, sweep past Johnston

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) When it gets late in the season, the Ankeny Centennial volleyball team isn’t going to overlook any opponent. Especially not a CIML Conference foe on the road. The second-ranked Jaguars traveled to Johnston on Tuesday and swept the Dragons in three sets, 25-16, 25-16, 25-14, to remain in third place in the league … [Read more...] about ‘I thought we played some good ball’: Jags avoid letdown, sweep past Johnston

No. 1 Wolves sweep Ankeny for their 15th straight win, clinch share of CIML crown

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The Ankeny volleyball team put together a few brief runs against top-ranked Waukee Northwest on Tuesday. It's difficult, though, to sustain any kind of momentum against the powerful Wolves--who boast four Division I recruits. Northwest eventually pulled away in each set to post a 25-19, 25-18, 25-16 victory at No. 4 Ankeny, allowing the Wolves to … [Read more...] about No. 1 Wolves sweep Ankeny for their 15th straight win, clinch share of CIML crown

Centennial defender Boyle commits to play soccer at Southwest Minnesota St.

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Ankeny Centennial senior defender Evie Boyle will continue her soccer career at Southwest Minnesota State. Boyle has verbally committed to play for the Mustangs, an NCAA Division II program located in Marshall, Minn. They compete in the Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference. "I'm so excited to continue my soccer and academic career at Southwest … [Read more...] about Centennial defender Boyle commits to play soccer at Southwest Minnesota St.

‘We had fun with it’: Swimmers begin busy week with 132-54 loss to No. 1 Dowling

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There wasn't much pressure Tuesday on the Ankeny girls' swimming team. So coach Dustin Rhoads and his swimmers decided to have some fun in their home dual meet against top-ranked Dowling Catholic. "It was good to be back home competing. We enjoyed hosting Dowling," Rhoads said after his No. 7 squad dropped a 132-54 decision at Trail Point Aquatics … [Read more...] about ‘We had fun with it’: Swimmers begin busy week with 132-54 loss to No. 1 Dowling

‘We just didn’t play up to our potential’: Ankeny golfers place 8th at district meet

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On Tuesday, the Ankeny boys' golf team finished just seven stokes behind sixth-ranked Valley, the Class 4A state champion in 2023 and last year's third-place finisher. On some days, that might have been good enough to allow the Hawks to earn a third consecutive trip to the state meet. But on this particular sunny day, it wasn't nearly … [Read more...] about ‘We just didn’t play up to our potential’: Ankeny golfers place 8th at district meet

Centennial all-stater Morris headed to Iowa Central as two-way baseball player

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Ankeny Centennial baseball standout Will Morris has decided to follow in the footsteps of his older brother. Morris, a pitcher and third baseman, has verbally committed to play for Iowa Central Community College in Fort Dodge. His brother, Trey, started his college career at Ellsworth Community College, then spent his sophomore year at Iowa Central before … [Read more...] about Centennial all-stater Morris headed to Iowa Central as two-way baseball player

Jaguars place 4th at district meet, but Miller qualifies for state as an individual

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' golf team faced a formidable task on Monday. The Jaguars knew that they would likely have to defeat one of the top six teams in Class 4A in order to earn a third consecutive trip to the state meet under coach Andrew Reedy. And they nearly did it. Centennial placed fourth among 14 teams in a district meet at the Fort Dodge … [Read more...] about Jaguars place 4th at district meet, but Miller qualifies for state as an individual

Hawks are No. 7, Jaguars No. 14 in initial Class 5A RPI football rankings from IHSAA

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Both Ankeny and Ankeny Centennial are in position to make the Class 5A football playoffs with three weeks left to go in the regular season. The Iowa High School Athletic Association unveiled its initial RPI rankings for Class 5A on Monday. The Hawks are No. 7 with an RPI of 0.6085, while the Jaguars are No. 14 with an RPI of 0.5285. The RPI … [Read more...] about Hawks are No. 7, Jaguars No. 14 in initial Class 5A RPI football rankings from IHSAA

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Ivy Wiegand, Ankeny girls’ cross country

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Senior Ivy Wiegand led the 20th-ranked Ankeny girls' cross country team to a ninth-place finish in the Southeast Polk Invitational on Thursday. She placed 35th in the 5K race with a time of 21 minutes 34 seconds. Wiegand placed 89th for the Hawkettes in last year's Class 4A state meet. She was clocked in 20:14. Here is some inside info on … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Ivy Wiegand, Ankeny girls’ cross country

‘I was composed’: Kohl gets his first start, helps App State to 27-23 win over Beavers

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JJ Kohl's first collegiate start produced a huge victory for the Appalachian State football team. The former Ankeny and Iowa State quarterback passed for one touchdown and ran for another to help the Mountaineers to a 27-23 win over Oregon State before a crowd of 35,021 on Saturday at Kidd Brewer Stadium in Boone, N.C. "It was very emotional," said … [Read more...] about ‘I was composed’: Kohl gets his first start, helps App State to 27-23 win over Beavers

Smith returns to lineup, helps Hawks to 6th-place finish at Steve Johnson Invite

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The return of Isaiah Smith to the lineup provided a huge boost for the Ankeny boys' cross country team on Saturday. Smith placed 24th in the Steve Johnson Invitational at Waverly to lead the Hawks to a sixth-place finish in the 35-team field. He posted a time of 16 minutes 36 seconds in the 5K race. Smith had been sidelined due to an injury since he … [Read more...] about Smith returns to lineup, helps Hawks to 6th-place finish at Steve Johnson Invite

AN HISTORIC DAY: Rinehart earns 400th victory, Cheeseman records 1,000th assist

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Ankeny Centennial's Jessica Rinehart reached another coaching milestone on Saturday during the Urbandale Invitational. Rinehart earned her 400th career victory--all of them at Centennial--when the second-ranked Jaguars completed a perfect 3-0 run through pool play with a 21-15, 18-21, 15-10 win over North Polk, the No. 15 team in Class 4A. "I don’t … [Read more...] about AN HISTORIC DAY: Rinehart earns 400th victory, Cheeseman records 1,000th assist

‘They’re just really good’: No. 2 Tigers overcome early deficit to beat Centennial

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The Ankeny Centennial football team got off to a great start in Friday's game at second-ranked Valley. The Jaguars took a 7-0 lead in the first quarter, when Brekken Miller fired a 36-yard touchdown pass to Luke Mitchell on fourth-and-9. "We got the ball first and put together a great drive," said Centennial co-head coach Ryan Pezzetti. "It was over 15 … [Read more...] about ‘They’re just really good’: No. 2 Tigers overcome early deficit to beat Centennial

‘It was a total team loss’: Hawks’ late lead slips away against No. 5 Johnston

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) The Ankeny football team just couldn’t find a way to get its offense and defense to sync up in a top-five showdown. As fourth-ranked Ankeny’s offense started to get going in the second half, so did No. 5 Johnston and the Dragons were able to pull out a 30-21 victory on Friday at Ankeny Stadium. “Obviously, we’re … [Read more...] about ‘It was a total team loss’: Hawks’ late lead slips away against No. 5 Johnston

Cyclones’ Smith begins collegiate tennis career with pair of wins at ISU tourney

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Former Ankeny tennis star Kira Smith made a successful collegiate debut on Friday. Iowa State opened its first-ever home fall tournament by going undefeated in singles on day one of the event. Smith, a freshman who won the Class 2A state singles title last spring, posted a 6-1, 6-1 victory over Addison Renfro of Kansas State. Smith also teamed up with … [Read more...] about Cyclones’ Smith begins collegiate tennis career with pair of wins at ISU tourney

‘We’ve got a great culture here’: Ex-Hawks Harrington, Pelham thriving for SDSU

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) It wasn’t that long ago when Max Pelham and Ryan Harrington found themselves booting the ball underneath the Friday Night Lights inside Ankeny Stadium. But now that pair of former all-state specialists for the Ankeny Hawks has linked up on one of the premier FCS Division I football programs in the country with the South … [Read more...] about ‘We’ve got a great culture here’: Ex-Hawks Harrington, Pelham thriving for SDSU