Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Winter

‘I couldn’t be happier’: Roland ecstatic despite Ankeny’s losses to top 2 teams

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) It’s not every day that the third-ranked team in Class 2A girls' wrestling can view itself as an underdog going into a triangular. But Tuesday night was the exception for the Ankeny girls' wrestling squad at Northview Middle School. Under one roof, Ankeny hosted and was defeated in two close duals by the only two teams … [Read more...] about ‘I couldn’t be happier’: Roland ecstatic despite Ankeny’s losses to top 2 teams

‘Things just snowballed on us’: Slow start dooms Jaguars in 52-37 loss to Johnston

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team is still seeking its first conference victory. A slow start on Friday doomed the Jaguars' hopes of pulling off an upset against visiting Johnston. The Dragons jumped out to a 20-3 lead in the first quarter, extended the margin to 33-11 at halftime and then held on for a 52-37 road victory. "We were not … [Read more...] about ‘Things just snowballed on us’: Slow start dooms Jaguars in 52-37 loss to Johnston

‘Johnston is a great team’: Dragons build huge lead, then hold off Centennial girls

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This year's version of the Johnston girls' basketball team might be even better than last year's state championship squad. That was the assessment by Ankeny Centennial coach Scott DeJong prior to the holiday break, and the top-ranked Dragons showed on Friday that the gap between them and the rest of the teams in Class 5A is still significant. Johnston … [Read more...] about ‘Johnston is a great team’: Dragons build huge lead, then hold off Centennial girls

Ankeny girls’ team extends winning streak to 13 matches before falling to S.E. Polk

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) The new year didn’t quite start with the bang that the Ankeny girls' wrestling team was hoping for. Ankeny bolstered an 11-0 record to close out the 2024 portion of its schedule, but a 2-1 mark during a quadrangular meet on Thursday at Southeast Polk snapped its undefeated streak to open up the new year. Coach Dustin … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls’ team extends winning streak to 13 matches before falling to S.E. Polk

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Tillie Smith, Ankeny Centennial girls’ basketball

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Senior guard Tillie Smith has helped the fourth-ranked Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team to a 6-2 record and a four-game winning streak heading into 2025. Smith is averaging 4.0 points per game. She leads the Jaguars with 10 3-point goals and is shooting 28.6 percent from behind the arc. Here is some inside info on Smith: Congratulations on a … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Tillie Smith, Ankeny Centennial girls’ basketball

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Cabryn Klingner, Centennial boys’ basketball

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Senior guard Cabryn Klingner scored a career-high 19 points as the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team posted a 64-59 victory at Iowa City Liberty in a non-conference game last Monday. He also grabbed seven rebounds and dished out three assists as the Jaguars (1-5) earned their first win of the season. Klingner is averaging 9.3 points, 3.3 rebounds … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Cabryn Klingner, Centennial boys’ basketball

‘It was a great win’: Surging Centennial girls win top-5 showdown vs. C.R. Prairie

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Last December, the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team suffered through a five-game losing streak and limped into the holiday break with a pedestrian 5-5 record. With everyone back from that squad, the Jaguars are in a much better position 12 months later. Fourth-ranked Centennial raised its overall mark to 6-2 by defeating No. 5 Cedar Rapids … [Read more...] about ‘It was a great win’: Surging Centennial girls win top-5 showdown vs. C.R. Prairie

Ankeny girls win Holiday Duals crown at DC-G to remain unbeaten on season

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Saturday was another amazing day for the Ankeny girls' wrestling program. Third-ranked Ankeny remained unbeaten by defeating four opponents to win the Holiday Duals at Dallas Center-Grimes. Coach Dustin Roland's team improved to 11-0 on the season. Ankeny posted wins over Woodward-Granger (42-36), Valley (54-24), Vinton-Shellsburg (51-24) and Dallas … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls win Holiday Duals crown at DC-G to remain unbeaten on season

Centennial boys hang with two-time defending champs until 4th quarter

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) If there’s one point of emphasis the Centennial boys' basketball team wants to focus on heading into the holiday break, it’s working on closing out games. The Jaguars went out on the road Friday and stuck with two-time reigning Class 4A champion Valley through three quarters, but the wheels fell off for Centennial in the … [Read more...] about Centennial boys hang with two-time defending champs until 4th quarter

‘I was kind of shocked by it’: Pratt scores career-high 30 in Jaguars’ rout at Valley

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) Jaeden Pratt is playing with a lot of confidence, and it helps when she’s got the perfect team around her. It was just a pair of free throws to begin Friday night’s contest that broke open the floodgates to a career-high 30-point outing for the Illinois State commit and a dominant 73-42 road win for the Ankeny Centennial … [Read more...] about ‘I was kind of shocked by it’: Pratt scores career-high 30 in Jaguars’ rout at Valley

‘It was a good shot in the arm’: Jaguars rally past Iowa City Liberty for first victory

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For the second time in four days, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team faced an opponent that was equally desperate to earn its first victory of the season. After letting Friday's game at Urbandale slip away in a 58-57 loss, the Jaguars rebounded on Monday with a non-conference win, rallying in the second half for a 64-59 triumph at Iowa City … [Read more...] about ‘It was a good shot in the arm’: Jaguars rally past Iowa City Liberty for first victory

Ankeny girls defeat 3 foes at Centennial Duals, raise their record to 7-0 on season

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Just getting on the mat Saturday was an accomplishment for the Ankeny girls' wrestling team. Ankeny hosted the Ankeny Centennial Duals at Northview Middle School, which was in danger of being cancelled due to the icy weather before a decision was made to hold the meet after a delayed start. "We were very excited about the opportunity to compete," said … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls defeat 3 foes at Centennial Duals, raise their record to 7-0 on season

Jaguars roll to back-to-back wins over Urbandale, Roosevelt in span of 24 hours

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A couple of fast starts helped the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team to back-to-back victories over Urbandale and Des Moines Roosevelt in a span of 24 hours. The fourth-ranked Jaguars jumped out to a 25-3 lead at the end of the first quarter and rolled to a 66-32 win at Urbandale on Friday. They then raced out to an early 22-6 advantage in … [Read more...] about Jaguars roll to back-to-back wins over Urbandale, Roosevelt in span of 24 hours

Urbandale boys erase 12-point deficit, score with 4 seconds left to beat Jaguars

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After opening the season with three straight double-digit losses, the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team was in position to earn its first victory on Friday. The visiting Jaguars built a 34-22 lead at halftime before Urbandale closed the gap to 49-41 after three quarters. The J-Hawks then outscored Centennial in the final period, 17-8, and scored the … [Read more...] about Urbandale boys erase 12-point deficit, score with 4 seconds left to beat Jaguars

‘They set the tempo right away’: Maroons start fast, roll to win over Centennial boys

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The Dowling Catholic boys' basketball team led from start to finish in a 69-54 victory over visiting Ankeny Centennial on Tuesday. The Maroons jumped out to an early 8-2 advantage and eventually led by as many as 23 points. They improved to 2-0 in the CIML Conference and overall, while Centennial's records dropped to 0-3 and 0-3. Dowling had opened the … [Read more...] about ‘They set the tempo right away’: Maroons start fast, roll to win over Centennial boys

Ankeny girls record 5 falls, get big win from Bockes in 57-18 triumph over Valley

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The third-ranked Ankeny girls' wrestling team remained unbeaten in dual-meet competition with a 57-18 victory over Valley in its CIML Conference opener on Tuesday at Urbandale. Ankeny won six of the eight matches that were contested to raise its overall record to 4-0. "We were happy with the way we competed in the limited matches that we had," said … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls record 5 falls, get big win from Bockes in 57-18 triumph over Valley

‘We left it out there’: Jaguars’ rally falls short in 56-52 loss at No. 2 Dowling

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Don't be surprised if the two CIML Conference rivals who met on Tuesday at Dowling Catholic collide again in March at the girls' state basketball tournament. The second-ranked Maroons and No. 5 Ankeny Centennial both look primed to make deep postseason runs. "They're No. 2 for a reason, that's for sure," Centennial coach Scott DeJong said following his … [Read more...] about ‘We left it out there’: Jaguars’ rally falls short in 56-52 loss at No. 2 Dowling

‘We had a great couple of days’: Ankeny girls earn 3rd-place finish at Donnybrook

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The Dan Gable Donnybrook proved to be a valuable experience for the Ankeny girls' wrestling team. Third-ranked Ankeny placed third among 44 teams in the tournament on Thursday and Friday at Xtream Arena in Coralville, finishing with 277 points. Coach Dustin Roland's team had six top-10 finishers. "We had a great couple of days competing with some … [Read more...] about ‘We had a great couple of days’: Ankeny girls earn 3rd-place finish at Donnybrook

‘It was definitely a little bit weird’: Baldwin, Hawkettes defeat Valley for 4-0 start

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(Story by Stephen McDaniel) For junior forward Reagan Baldwin, it felt a little weird being the opposition rather than the home team inside the Valley High School gym. Baldwin, who transferred to Ankeny from Valley after her sophomore season, stepped foot back in her old stomping grounds on Tuesday and played a key role in helping the eighth-ranked … [Read more...] about ‘It was definitely a little bit weird’: Baldwin, Hawkettes defeat Valley for 4-0 start