Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Summer

Blimpie Sub of the Week: Garrett Stiles, Ankeny baseball

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Garrett Stiles of the Ankeny baseball team is the Ankeny Fanatic Sub of the Week sponsored by Blimpie. Stiles is batting .172 with one double and three RBIs. He hit a two-run single in the sixth inning to give the Hawks a 3-2 victory at then-No. 9 Southeast Polk on June 4. Stiles has helped Ankeny to a 19-16 record. The Hawks will host Newton in a … [Read more...] about Blimpie Sub of the Week: Garrett Stiles, Ankeny baseball

Stalzer shuts down Hawkettes, leads Valley to state tourney berth

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The Ankeny softball team picked a bad time to have its worst offensive showing of the season. Valley's Claire Stalzer tossed a one-hitter and had 10 strikeouts to lead the fifth-ranked Tigers to a 4-0 victory over visiting Ankeny in a Class 5A regional final on Tuesday. The No. 9 Hawkettes, who finished the season with a 28-13 record, had been averaging … [Read more...] about Stalzer shuts down Hawkettes, leads Valley to state tourney berth

Hawkettes to play Valley for trip to state tournament

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When the Class 5A regional softball pairings were released, Ankeny appeared to have earned a No. 1 seed in Region 2. That all changed on July 2, when Valley swept a doubleheader against the Hawkettes to capture the CIML Central Conference title. The Tigers then rose to fifth in the final Class 5A rankings, while Ankeny dropped to ninth. That means the … [Read more...] about Hawkettes to play Valley for trip to state tournament

Hawks show they’re ‘comfortable playing behind’ Maifeld during Monday’s sweep

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The Ankeny baseball team entered Monday's non-conference doubleheader at Des Moines Roosevelt with a .500 record. The Hawks showed in the first game, however, that they're better than that with Jayden Maifeld on the mound. Maifeld tossed five strong innings in a tune-up for postseason play to lead Ankeny to a 10-4 victory. The Hawks then completed a … [Read more...] about Hawks show they’re ‘comfortable playing behind’ Maifeld during Monday’s sweep

Revive Clinic and Spa Prep of the Week: Jayden Maifeld, Ankeny baseball

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Ankeny senior Jayden Maifeld is one of the state's top pitchers. He tossed a four-hitter to lead the Hawks to a 12-0 victory over Ames in five innings on Thursday. Maifeld has compiled a 4-3 record with a 1.65 ERA. He has racked up 48 strikeouts while allowing just 11 walks. Maifeld has also been the Hawks' top hitter this season. He is batting .384 … [Read more...] about Revive Clinic and Spa Prep of the Week: Jayden Maifeld, Ankeny baseball

Thomas hits another slam, Rumley homers twice in Hawkettes’ 12-0 rout

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Opposing softball teams might want to think twice before pitching to Ankeny's Kennedy Thomas with the bases loaded. Thomas hit her fourth grand slam of the year, Jasmine Rumley added a pair of solo blasts, and the ninth-ranked Hawkettes rolled to a 12-0 victory over visiting Council Bluffs Jefferson in four innings in a Class 5A regional semifinal on … [Read more...] about Thomas hits another slam, Rumley homers twice in Hawkettes’ 12-0 rout

Hawks fall twice to Fort Dodge on their Senior Night

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The Ankeny baseball team was hoping to use a Senior Night doubleheader to get back above the .500 mark. Instead, the Hawks saw their losing streak extended to five games as visiting Fort Dodge swept both games of a non-conference twinbill on Tuesday, 6-4 and 2-0. The Dodgers snapped their own five-game losing streak while improving to 13-18 on the … [Read more...] about Hawks fall twice to Fort Dodge on their Senior Night

Valley sweeps Hawkettes, claims Central Conference crown

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If the Ankeny softball team defeats Valley next week to earn a trip to the Class 5A state tournament, none of the Hawkettes will even care about what happened on Monday night. The ninth-ranked Tigers swept a doubleheader against No. 8 Ankeny, 12-5 and 14-8, to clinch the outright CIML Central Conference title. The two teams entered the twinbill at Valley … [Read more...] about Valley sweeps Hawkettes, claims Central Conference crown

Walk-off win allows Tigers to claim outright conference title

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The Valley baseball team had already clinched at least a share of the CIML Central Conference title heading into Monday's doubleheader against visiting Ankeny. The Tigers were determined to capture the outright crown. Valley swept the twinbill by scores of 6-5 and 4-1 to finish with a 15-5 record in the league. The Tigers improved to 24-12 … [Read more...] about Walk-off win allows Tigers to claim outright conference title

Maifeld tosses 3-hitter, leads Hawks to split against No. 6 S.E. Polk

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When Jayden Maifeld is at the top of his game, the Ankeny baseball team can be pretty dangerous. Maifeld tossed a three-hitter and had eight strikeouts to lead the Hawks to a 5-2 victory over sixth-ranked Southeast Polk in the first game of a CIML Central Conference doubleheader on Saturday at Ankeny. "I felt great," said Maifeld, who evened his record … [Read more...] about Maifeld tosses 3-hitter, leads Hawks to split against No. 6 S.E. Polk

Buttjer honored before Hawkettes drop 3-2 decision to North Polk

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Senior Sophie Buttjer has appeared in only five games this season for the Ankeny softball team, pitching a total of 10 2/3 innings. Buttjer was sidelined by a blood clot in her leg that prevented her from being a part of the Hawkettes' regular rotation on the mound. "It was an emotional deal," said Ankeny coach Dave Bingham. "I think she would have … [Read more...] about Buttjer honored before Hawkettes drop 3-2 decision to North Polk

Hawkettes sweep Ames, will play at Valley Monday for conference title

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The race for the CIML Central Conference softball title will be decided on Monday night. That's when ninth-ranked Valley will host No. 8 Ankeny in a head-to-head showdown for the crown. The doubleheader begins at 6 p.m. Both teams are now 13-4 in the conference after the Hawkettes swept a twinbill on Thursday at Ames. They rolled to a 14-1 victory in … [Read more...] about Hawkettes sweep Ames, will play at Valley Monday for conference title

Magical season continues for Hawkettes with 2 extra-inning wins over Waukee

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It's been a season of magical moments for Kennedy Thomas and the eighth-ranked Ankeny softball team. On Wednesday, Thomas delivered the most magical moment thus far. The senior slugger hit a walk-off grand slam with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Hawkettes a 9-6 victory over No. 11 Waukee in the first game of a CIML Central … [Read more...] about Magical season continues for Hawkettes with 2 extra-inning wins over Waukee

Hawks bounce back to win nightcap, earn split against Waukee

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Ankeny baseball coach Joe Balvanz wanted to use both Cameron Rinker and Chris Spear on the mound during Wednesday's doubleheader against visiting Waukee. He is also hoping to get some innings out of both pitchers during Saturday's make-up twinbill against sixth-ranked Southeast Polk. The only solution was to split Wednesday's second game between the … [Read more...] about Hawks bounce back to win nightcap, earn split against Waukee

Blimpie Sub of the Week: Madison Bonner-Palmer, Ankeny softball

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Madison Bonner-Palmer of the Ankeny softball team is the Ankeny Fanatic Sub of the Week sponsored by Blimpie. The senior slugger is batting .417 on the season. She has two home runs and two doubles among her 15 hits while driving in 11 runs. Bonner-Palmer has helped Ankeny to a 23-8 record and a No. 8 ranking in Class 5A. The Hawkettes will host a CIML … [Read more...] about Blimpie Sub of the Week: Madison Bonner-Palmer, Ankeny softball

Hawkettes halt brief losing skid with 11-1 victory over Pleasantville

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For the third time this season, the Ankeny softball team refused to let back-to-back losses turn into a three-game losing streak. The eighth-ranked Hawkettes rolled to an 11-1 victory over Pleasantville in five innings in their final game at the Brent Prange Classic on Saturday. They went 2-2 in the tournament and are now 22-8 on the season. "We came … [Read more...] about Hawkettes halt brief losing skid with 11-1 victory over Pleasantville

After long layoff, Hawks fall to Heelan, then roll past Bettendorf

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It took awhile, but the Ankeny baseball team finally got its offense untracked during the Brent Prange Classic on Saturday. After dropping a 2-1 decision to Sioux City Heelan, the Hawks fell behind Bettendorf, 1-0, in their second game of the tournament. Ankeny scored twice in the third inning to take a 2-1 lead. The Hawks then erupted for six runs in … [Read more...] about After long layoff, Hawks fall to Heelan, then roll past Bettendorf

Bingham watches from dugout as Hawkettes sweep Dowling Catholic

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Ankeny softball coach Dave Bingham has been coaching from the dugout in recent games. The way the Hawkettes played on Thursday, he may stay there for awhile. Eighth-ranked Ankeny swept a non-conference doubleheader against No. 14 Dowling Catholic at Dick Rasmussen Field to raise its overall record to 20-6. The Hawkettes posted a 6-5 victory in the … [Read more...] about Bingham watches from dugout as Hawkettes sweep Dowling Catholic

Hawkettes regain sole possession of first place on Daugherty’s walk-off single

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With one swing of the bat, Malea Daugherty lifted the Ankeny softball team back into sole possession of first place in the CIML Central Conference. Daugherty hit a walk-off single with two outs in the eighth inning to give the 11th-ranked Hawkettes a 5-4 victory over No. 12 Southeast Polk in the second game of a doubleheader on Wednesday at Ankeny. The … [Read more...] about Hawkettes regain sole possession of first place on Daugherty’s walk-off single