Ankeny Fanatic

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Dan Holm

Fontana named state of Iowa recipient of Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award

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Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball coach Bob Fontana has been named the state of Iowa recipient of the John Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award.  Fontana was presented his award prior to Tuesday's game at home against Waukee. "I'm very humbled and feel honored to receive this award from the Wooden Foundation and the National High School … [Read more...] about Fontana named state of Iowa recipient of Wooden Legacy Coach of the Year award

Ankeny earns runner-up finish at district meet, advances 9 swimmers to state

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The Ankeny boys' swimming team earned a runner-up finish in a district meet on Saturday at Summit Middle School in Johnston. More importantly, the Hawks qualified for the state meet in all three relays while advancing eight of their swimmers in a total of 12 individual events. "We had a good meet!" said Ankeny coach Dustin … [Read more...] about Ankeny earns runner-up finish at district meet, advances 9 swimmers to state

Hawks close in on winning season with victories over Urbandale, Iowa City Liberty

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With two more victories over the weekend, the Ankeny boys' basketball team is on the verge of wrapping up a winning season. The Hawks posted a 60-50 triumph over visiting Urbandale in a CIML Conference game on Friday, then followed with a 79-48 win over Iowa City Liberty in the State Basketball Crossover event on Saturday … [Read more...] about Hawks close in on winning season with victories over Urbandale, Iowa City Liberty

Hot-shooting Hawkettes celebrate their Senior Night with rout over Urbandale

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For the second time this season, the Ankeny girls' basketball team used a fast start to ignite a rout over Urbandale. The 15th-ranked Hawkettes raced out to a 23-5 lead at the end of the first quarter and went on to post a 79-36 victory Friday on their Senior Night. The win snapped … [Read more...] about Hot-shooting Hawkettes celebrate their Senior Night with rout over Urbandale

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Kyla Schaapveld, Ankeny girls’ basketball

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Junior guard Kyla Schaapveld scored eight points and dished out five assists to help the 15th-ranked Ankeny girls' basketball team to a 79-36 victory over visiting Urbandale on Friday. She went 2-of-4 from 3-point range as part of her squad's 13-of-25 shooting from behind the arc. Schaapveld has played in all 20 games with 16 … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Kyla Schaapveld, Ankeny girls’ basketball

Centennial boys earn road win over S.E. Polk for their first CIML Conference victory

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It took awhile, but the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team finally earned its first CIML Conference victory. The Jaguars made some big plays down the stretch and posted a 52-49 win at Southeast Polk on Friday. Both squads are now 1-13 in the league and will meet again in the regular-season finale on Feb. 20 at … [Read more...] about Centennial boys earn road win over S.E. Polk for their first CIML Conference victory

‘I’m super proud of our girls’: Ankeny earns runner-up trophy behind 7 placewinners

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) The ascension of the Ankeny girls' wrestling program has been a quick one. In the span of just three seasons, Ankeny went from placing 40th as a team in its first year, leaping up to seventh place last year and finishing the 2024-25 season as the Class 2A team runner-up on Friday night at Xtream Arena in Coralville. The … [Read more...] about ‘I’m super proud of our girls’: Ankeny earns runner-up trophy behind 7 placewinners

‘It’s history, man’: Engebretson, Bratland become Ankeny’s first 2 state champions

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) What was Friday night like for the Ankeny girls' wrestling team? Head coach Dustin Roland summed it up the best. “It’s history, man,” Roland said after Ankeny recorded its first two individual state champions. “Anytime you’re a part of history, it’s special. I'm super proud of (Elyse Engebretson and Hayden … [Read more...] about ‘It’s history, man’: Engebretson, Bratland become Ankeny’s first 2 state champions

‘It was a great win’: Centennial girls shoot 46 percent in road victory over S.E. Polk

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The Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team had one of its best shooting performances of the season on Friday. The-fourth ranked Jaguars shot 46.0 percent from the field (23-of-50) and cruised to a 62-47 victory at No. 14 Southeast Polk in the first meeting between the two CIML Conference rivals, who will face each … [Read more...] about ‘It was a great win’: Centennial girls shoot 46 percent in road victory over S.E. Polk

Bockes, Engebretson, Bratland, McGrew to wrestle for state titles on Friday night

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The Ankeny girls' wrestling squad has moved ahead of Cedar Falls and into second place in the Class 2A team race heading into Friday night's final session in the state tournament at Xtream Arena in Coralville. Raccoon River-Northwest finished the daytime session with 144.5 points and put two wrestlers in the finals, including … [Read more...] about Bockes, Engebretson, Bratland, McGrew to wrestle for state titles on Friday night

Ankeny girls advance 5 wrestlers to Class 2A semis, remain in chase for team crown

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The opening day of the girls' state wrestling tournament was a productive one for coach Dustin Roland and his Ankeny squad. After losing its first two matches on Thursday, Ankeny rebounded to go 14-4 the rest of the way and sits in third place overall with 63 points heading into Friday. Raccoon River-Northwest … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls advance 5 wrestlers to Class 2A semis, remain in chase for team crown

‘We just didn’t knock down our shots’: Scoring drought proves costly for Jaguars

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Cabryn Klingner laid the ball up past a defender, off the glass and into the hoop for the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team during the early stages of the third quarter in Tuesday's game at Johnston. Unfortunately for the Jaguars, Klingner’s layup ended up being their only … [Read more...] about ‘We just didn’t knock down our shots’: Scoring drought proves costly for Jaguars

Hot-shooting Johnston extends winning streak with 68-49 victory over Jaguars

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Many have tried in the last 43 games, but none have succeeded and Ankeny Centennial was the latest girls' basketball team to add to Johnston’s long winning streak. The fourth-ranked Jaguars attempted to pull off a big road upset of No. 1 Johnston on Tuesday, but the nation's No. 13 squad … [Read more...] about Hot-shooting Johnston extends winning streak with 68-49 victory over Jaguars

Hawk wrestlers roll to win over Norwalk, then fall to No. 8 Carlisle in regional final

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The Ankeny wrestling team was in a position to advance to the state duals tournament. After the ninth-ranked Hawks posted a 36-28 victory over No. 11 Norwalk in a Class 3A regional dual on Tuesday at Carlisle, they took a 26-25 lead against No. 8 Carlisle with three matches left in the regional … [Read more...] about Hawk wrestlers roll to win over Norwalk, then fall to No. 8 Carlisle in regional final

Jags advance to regional final on Keller’s pin, then tumble to No. 6 Waukee NW

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It should not be surprising that a team with a .500 record would come away with another split on Tuesday in a Class 3A regional dual at Waukee Northwest. The 14th-ranked Ankeny Centennial wrestlers got a pin from heavyweight Brook Keller in the final match to beat No. 12 Council Bluffs Lewis Central, 34-33, in the opening … [Read more...] about Jags advance to regional final on Keller’s pin, then tumble to No. 6 Waukee NW

Ankeny girls’ bowling team beats Ames, raises overall record to 9-1 on season

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The Ankeny girls' bowling team bounced back from its first loss by defeating host Ames in a non-conference meet on Tuesday at Perfect Games. The Hawkettes won the meet by a score of 2,134 to 2,066. It marked only the third time this season that coach Nick Payton's squad won by fewer than 100 … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls’ bowling team beats Ames, raises overall record to 9-1 on season

‘We wanted the win, and it hurts’: Hawks’ late scoring drought proves costly vs. NW

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The Ankeny boys' basketball team was coming off perhaps its biggest victory of the season. A win on Monday over visiting Waukee Northwest would have been even bigger. Unfortunately, the Hawks' upset bid came up short in the final 100 seconds. The fifth-ranked Wolves scored the final six points of the game to post a 68-63 win at … [Read more...] about ‘We wanted the win, and it hurts’: Hawks’ late scoring drought proves costly vs. NW

Williams, Hawkettes battle No. 3 Waukee NW to the wire, but upset bid falls short

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In its previous six games against the top four teams in the CIML Conference and Class 5A, the Ankeny girls' basketball squad had lost by an average of 21.7 points. On Monday night, the 15th-ranked Hawkettes nearly knocked off one of the league's heavyweights. Ankeny led for much of the second half before No. 3 Waukee … [Read more...] about Williams, Hawkettes battle No. 3 Waukee NW to the wire, but upset bid falls short