Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Winter

A COMEBACK FOR THE AGES: Jaguars rally from 25 down to edge Ankeny boys

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A noticeable number of fans left the Ankeny Centennial gym on Friday after the Ankeny boys' basketball team built a commanding 37-14 halftime lead over the eighth-ranked Jaguars. Those fans missed quite the finish. After Ankeny's Maddox Ward scored the first basket of the third quarter to extend the margin to 25 points, Centennial responded with an … [Read more...] about A COMEBACK FOR THE AGES: Jaguars rally from 25 down to edge Ankeny boys

‘Jenna put us on her back’: Pitz again leads Hawkettes past rival Centennial

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Ankeny senior Jenna Pitz struggled through one of the worst shooting nights of her basketball career on Dec. 20, going 1-for-13 from the field in the Hawkettes' 59-52 loss to Ankeny Centennial. She wasn't going to let it happen again. Pitz scored 16 of her 17 points in the second half to lead 13th-ranked Ankeny to a 48-43 victory at No. 6 Centennial on … [Read more...] about ‘Jenna put us on her back’: Pitz again leads Hawkettes past rival Centennial

Ankeny Fanatic’s predictions for the Jag-Hawk basketball rematches

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Round 2 of the Jag-Hawk basketball showdowns will be held on Friday at Centennial, where the Jaguars will try to complete a sweep of both the boys' and girls' series for the third time in four seasons and for the fourth time ever. Centennial dominated both of the games at Ankeny back in December, resulting in a 19-point win for the boys and a deceiving … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic’s predictions for the Jag-Hawk basketball rematches

No. 4 Hawks to face Valley, No. 6 Jaguars to meet W-SR at state duals tourney

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The pairings have been announced for the Class 3A state duals wrestling tournament. Fourth-seeded Ankeny (20-2) will meet fifth-seeded Valley in the quarterfinals on Saturday at 9 a.m. at the Xtream Arena in Coralville. The CIML Conference rivals met on Jan. 12 at Valley, where the Hawks posted a 42-23 victory. Ankeny is making its second straight … [Read more...] about No. 4 Hawks to face Valley, No. 6 Jaguars to meet W-SR at state duals tourney

Hawk wrestlers roll past Bluejays, earn another trip to state duals tournament

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Ankeny junior Ben Hansen was excited when the regional dual wrestling assignments came out. The fourth-ranked Hawks learned last week that they would likely host No. 13 Bondurant-Farrar in Tuesday's regional final at Ankeny. The two teams met at the Dave Ewing Duals on Jan. 21, when Ankeny posted a 39-21 victory in the championship match. However, the … [Read more...] about Hawk wrestlers roll past Bluejays, earn another trip to state duals tournament

‘It was a nailbiter’: Jaguars edge Carlisle on 9th criteria, advance to state duals

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When Ankeny Centennial's Cael Wiener stepped onto the wrestling mat Tuesday night, he had a chance to send his team to the Class 3A state duals tournament. The 132-pound senior just didn't know for sure by what margin he needed to win in order to give the sixth-ranked Jaguars a victory over No. 10 Carlisle in a regional final at Centennial. "At first … [Read more...] about ‘It was a nailbiter’: Jaguars edge Carlisle on 9th criteria, advance to state duals

‘We played them pretty tough’: Hawks show progress in 66-55 loss at No. 3 NW

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For nearly three quarters on Friday night, the Ankeny boys' basketball team threatened to knock off the state's No. 3 squad for the second time in two weeks. The Hawks, who posted a 56-51 upset over Waukee on Jan. 13, battled host Waukee Northwest to a 41-41 tie about 5 minutes into the second half. But the Wolves then closed the third quarter with an 8-2 … [Read more...] about ‘We played them pretty tough’: Hawks show progress in 66-55 loss at No. 3 NW

‘It was huge’: Gage, Hawkettes dominate final 4 minutes to earn road win over NW

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If the Ankeny girls' basketball team hopes to finish the season with a winning record, Friday's contest at Waukee Northwest was a must-win game. The 14th-ranked Hawkettes got what they needed with a 59-52 victory, allowing them to sweep the season series. They improved to 4-9 in the CIML Conference and 9-9 overall with three games left in the regular … [Read more...] about ‘It was huge’: Gage, Hawkettes dominate final 4 minutes to earn road win over NW

RAM TOUGH: S.E. Polk wrestlers top Ankeny to capture conference crown

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There's still a gap between the Southeast Polk wrestling team and the rest of the CIML Conference. The top-ranked Rams won 11 of the 14 matches and rolled to a 45-12 victory at No. 4 Ankeny on Thursday, allowing them to wrap up the league's dual-meet crown. The Hawks finished 7-1 in the conference and dropped to 19-2 overall. "We got outwrestled in … [Read more...] about RAM TOUGH: S.E. Polk wrestlers top Ankeny to capture conference crown

Centennial wrestlers close out regular season with 36-34 loss at Waukee NW

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The Ankeny Centennial wrestling team closed out the regular season on Thursday with a 36-34 loss at Waukee Northwest. The Wolves won eight of the 14 matches to offset four pins and two technical falls by Centennial. The 10th-ranked Jaguars finished 4-4 in the CIML Conference and dropped to 20-6 overall. Northwest sealed the win when defending state … [Read more...] about Centennial wrestlers close out regular season with 36-34 loss at Waukee NW

‘It was another nailbiter’: Ankeny bowlers fall to Urbandale by combined 15 pins

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The Ankeny bowling teams entered Wednesday's dual meet against Urbandale with a chance to even their record at .500 in the CIML Conference. Instead, both squads suffered a narrow loss to the host J-Hawks at Merle Hay Lanes. Urbandale won the boys' meet by a score of 2,813 to 2,806. The J-Hawks won the girls' meet by a score of 1,885 to 1,877. "It … [Read more...] about ‘It was another nailbiter’: Ankeny bowlers fall to Urbandale by combined 15 pins

Hawks struggle in loss to Dowling after leading scorer Johnson injures ankle

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A challenging season for the Ankeny boys' basketball team may have gotten even more challenging on Tuesday. Junior guard Carson Johnson, the Hawks' leading scorer, suffered an ankle injury during his team's 61-49 loss to visiting Dowling Catholic. The Maroons avenged a 74-65 loss to Ankeny last month. "We struggled offensively," said Ankeny coach … [Read more...] about Hawks struggle in loss to Dowling after leading scorer Johnson injures ankle

‘They’re on a roll’: Surging Maroons top Ankeny girls for 9th straight victory

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The schedule hasn't been kind to the Ankeny girls' basketball team. The 15th-ranked Hawkettes ran into perhaps the state's hottest team on Tuesday in No. 4 Dowling Catholic, which entered the contest on an eight-game winning streak. The Maroons, who snapped No. 1 Johnston's 42-game winning streak with a 62-48 victory on Friday, kept their momentum … [Read more...] about ‘They’re on a roll’: Surging Maroons top Ankeny girls for 9th straight victory

No. 4 Ankeny, No. 6 Centennial to host regional wrestling duals on Jan. 31

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Both Ankeny and Ankeny Centennial will host Class 3A regional wrestling duals on Jan. 31. The fourth-ranked Hawks (19-1) will host either No. 13 Bondurant-Farrar or No. 19 Iowa City High in the regional final. Those two teams will meet in the preliminary round at 6 p.m., with the winner advancing to face Ankeny. The Hawks defeated Bondurant-Farrar, … [Read more...] about No. 4 Ankeny, No. 6 Centennial to host regional wrestling duals on Jan. 31

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Carson Johnson, Ankeny boys’ basketball

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Junior guard Carson Johnson scored 15 points as the Ankeny boys' basketball team posted a 59-55 win at Southeast Polk on Friday for its third consecutive win. He made 3-of-4 free throws in the final 1 minute 19 seconds to help seal the triumph. Johnson, who recently scored his 500th career point, has helped the Hawks to records of 4-7 in the CIML … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Carson Johnson, Ankeny boys’ basketball

‘It’s a good feeling to win it again’: Hawks capture 4th straight Ewing Duals title

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The storybook season continues for the Ankeny wrestling team. The fourth-ranked Hawks easily won their own Dave Ewing Duals on Saturday for the fourth consecutive year. They defeated their four opponents by an average margin of 50 points to raise their overall record to 19-1. Ankeny surpassed its total of 17 wins from last year, which had been its … [Read more...] about ‘It’s a good feeling to win it again’: Hawks capture 4th straight Ewing Duals title

‘They weren’t afraid of the competition’: Jaguars take 4th at rugged Winger Invite

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Saturday's Ed Winger Invitational at Urbandale gave the Ankeny Centennial wrestlers an opportunity to test themselves against some of the state's top grapplers. The Jaguars responded with a strong performance, placing fourth in a field of 24 teams with 120 points. They had eight top-six finishes. "I was pretty pleased with the way things went," said … [Read more...] about ‘They weren’t afraid of the competition’: Jaguars take 4th at rugged Winger Invite

Ankeny swimmers pick events out of a hat, then place 3rd at conference meet

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For the most part, Ankeny boys' swimming coach Justin Crouch didn't enter his varsity swimmers in their best events for the CIML Conference meet on Saturday at Southeast Polk. He picked his lineup at random. "We decided to swim off events," said Crouch. "Considering we drew events out of a hat, we were able to finish third. I thought it was a great … [Read more...] about Ankeny swimmers pick events out of a hat, then place 3rd at conference meet