Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Winter

No. 7 Little Cyclones pull away in 2nd half for 57-29 victory over Centennial boys

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For the first 20 minutes of Tuesday's game at Ames, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team hung around with the seventh-ranked squad in Class 4A. The Jaguars were in a position to possibly pull off an upset with a strong finish, trailing by just 28-22 midway through the third quarter. But then the Little Cyclones cranked up the defensive pressure … [Read more...] about No. 7 Little Cyclones pull away in 2nd half for 57-29 victory over Centennial boys

‘It was a fun Senior Night’: Jaguars place 5 players in double figures, beat S.E. Polk

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The nine seniors on the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team had plenty to celebrate following Friday's game against visiting Southeast Polk. The fourth-ranked Jaguars closed out the regular season with a 60-52 victory, defeating the No. 13 Rams for the second time in eight days. Then, one of coach Scott DeJong's largest senior classes was … [Read more...] about ‘It was a fun Senior Night’: Jaguars place 5 players in double figures, beat S.E. Polk

Martin continues torrid stretch, leads Jags past Waukee for 4th-place finish in CIML

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Ankeny Centennial's Ava Martin is on a heater. The senior guard scored a season-high 18 points on Tuesday to lead the fourth-ranked Jaguars to a 62-46 victory over No. 11 Waukee in a CIML Conference girls' basketball game at Centennial. She went 7-of-11 from the field, including 4-of-6 from 3-point range. "It feels so good," Martin said after her team … [Read more...] about Martin continues torrid stretch, leads Jags past Waukee for 4th-place finish in CIML

Waukee boys overcome Jacobson’s injury to beat Jaguars, stay in CIML title hunt

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Tuesday's game at Ankeny Centennial got off to a bad start for the Waukee boys' basketball team. The eighth-ranked Warriors lost leading scorer Evan Jacobson to a leg injury in the opening minutes of the contest. Jacobson was helped to the locker room and did not return to action. "You don't wish that on anybody, but they had some other kids step up," … [Read more...] about Waukee boys overcome Jacobson’s injury to beat Jaguars, stay in CIML title hunt

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

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

‘We got off to a good start’: Centennial boys build big lead, roll past Railsplitters

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After getting off to a 1-11 start, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team has now won two of its last three games--by an average of 30 points. The Jaguars built a 32-12 halftime lead and cruised to a 65-36 victory at Des Moines Lincoln in a non-conference game on Saturday. They are now 3-12 on the season, while Lincoln's … [Read more...] about ‘We got off to a good start’: Centennial boys build big lead, roll past Railsplitters

‘The balance was good to see’: 4 players score in double digits in Jaguars’ road win

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There was no time for the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team to dwell on Friday's loss at Waukee. The fourth-ranked Jaguars had to play a rare Saturday afternoon game less than 24 hours later. Centennial traveled to Ames for a non-conference contest and rolled to a 60-21 victory over the … [Read more...] about ‘The balance was good to see’: 4 players score in double digits in Jaguars’ road win

Centennial boys suffer another injury, then drop 62-41 decision at No. 6 Waukee

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Before the ball even tipped off, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team was battling some adversity. The Jaguars were already dealing with a recent string of injuries and illnesses, all while having to travel out to Waukee on Friday to face the sixth-ranked Warriors. Centennial fell into a hole early on and went … [Read more...] about Centennial boys suffer another injury, then drop 62-41 decision at No. 6 Waukee

‘We had a great night’: Ankeny girls win regional title, advance 9 wrestlers to state

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The Ankeny girls' wrestling team was assigned to the Class 2A regional site at Cedar Rapids Jefferson along with seven squads from eastern Iowa. The long trip on Friday to the "City of Five Seasons" didn't seem to bother coach Dustin Roland's team. Ankeny crowned five individual champions, had four other girls qualify for state … [Read more...] about ‘We had a great night’: Ankeny girls win regional title, advance 9 wrestlers to state

‘We just didn’t finish out the game well’: Jaguars fall at Waukee in last few minutes

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) It was an uphill battle most of the way for the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team. In the end, the fourth-ranked Jaguars fell just a little short. Despite battling back from a 10-point deficit and a strong second half from senior Mya Crawford, Centennial dropped a 57-53 decision at No. 12 Waukee in a … [Read more...] about ‘We just didn’t finish out the game well’: Jaguars fall at Waukee in last few minutes