Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Winter

J-Hawks spoil Ankeny boys’ Senior Night as Hawks’ offense fizzles in 2nd half

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It's been an up-and-down season for the Ankeny boys' basketball team. After winning three straight games in mid-January, the Hawks have now lost four in a row following Tuesday's 59-46 setback to visiting Urbandale. The J-Hawks improved to 2-13 in the CIML Conference and 7-13 overall, while Ankeny's records dropped to 4-11 and 6-13. Both of Urbandale's … [Read more...] about J-Hawks spoil Ankeny boys’ Senior Night as Hawks’ offense fizzles in 2nd half

‘It was a great night for the seniors’: Lewis, Hawkettes roll past Urbandale

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Kendra Lewis and the other seniors on the Ankeny girls' basketball team wanted to make sure that their Senior Night was a joyous occasion. The 13th-ranked Hawkettes did just that with a 62-24 victory over visiting Urbandale on Tuesday. Lewis, a reserve guard, led the way with 14 points, making 3-of-9 3-pointers. Fellow senior Jenna Pitz scored 12 … [Read more...] about ‘It was a great night for the seniors’: Lewis, Hawkettes roll past Urbandale

‘We’ve just got to learn from it’: Jaguars finish 8th in 3A duals tournament

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Ankeny Centennial's trip to the state duals wrestling tournament turned into a bumpy ride. The Jaguars placed eighth in the Class 3A field on Saturday at Xtream Arena in Coralville. They finished the dual season with a 21-9 record after losing to all three of their opponents. "It was just one of those days where we came out flat and wrestled flat all … [Read more...] about ‘We’ve just got to learn from it’: Jaguars finish 8th in 3A duals tournament

‘We wrestled as hard as we could’: Hawks place 4th in 3A duals tourney

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The Ankeny wrestling team returned home from the Class 3A state duals tournament with some new hardware for the school's trophy case. The Hawks earned a fourth-place finish on Saturday at Xtream Arena in Coralville. It was the highest finish in school history. "We wanted to finish higher, but I can honestly say we had no regrets when we left there," … [Read more...] about ‘We wrestled as hard as we could’: Hawks place 4th in 3A duals tourney

Ankeny swimmers respond to adversity, earn runner-up finish at district meet

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Saturday's district meet at Ames went pretty smoothly for the Ankeny boys' swimming team--with one notable exception. Owen Schwebach was disqualified for a false start in the 50 freestyle, but he then rebounded with a personal best in the 100 butterfly and helped seventh-ranked Ankeny to a runner-up finish in the eight-team field. The Hawks scored 438 … [Read more...] about Ankeny swimmers respond to adversity, earn runner-up finish at district meet

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