Ankeny Fanatic

Your Ankeny Sports Resource

Winter

Hot-shooting Jaguars make 13 3-point goals, romp to win over S.E. Polk

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One of the things that stands out about the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team is the Jaguars' unselfish play. Fourth-ranked Centennial racked up 20 assists while committing just six turnovers and rolled to a 77-47 victory over visiting Southeast Polk on Friday. "We had great ball movement and really shared the ball," said Centennial coach Bob … [Read more...] about Hot-shooting Jaguars make 13 3-point goals, romp to win over S.E. Polk

‘It was a great win’: Centennial girls use late rally to knock off No. 6 S.E. Polk

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In the latest Iowa Girls' High School Athletic Union basketball rankings, Ankeny Centennial moved up one spot to No. 5 in Class 5A, trading places with CIML rival Southeast Polk. Perhaps the IGHSAU officials can predict the future. On Friday, the two teams battled down to the wire before Centennial escaped with a 54-52 victory on its home court. The … [Read more...] about ‘It was a great win’: Centennial girls use late rally to knock off No. 6 S.E. Polk

‘This was a great test for our girls’: Five Ankeny wrestlers claim titles at Nevada

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Five Ankeny girls captured individual titles on Thursday at the Nevada wrestling scramble. Third-ranked Dana Cleveland at 135 pounds was among Ankeny's champions. She raised her record to 22-3 on the season. Other individual winners were Elyse Engebretson at 115 (19-5), Trudy Haag at 120 (19-4), Josie Bishop at 190 (19-12) and Melanie Martinez at 235 … [Read more...] about ‘This was a great test for our girls’: Five Ankeny wrestlers claim titles at Nevada

No. 1 Wolves win showdown against Centennial boys behind Sandfort’s 28

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Iowa's Payton Sandfort is going through a dreadful shooting slump, having missed all 19 of his attempts from the field in the Hawkeyes' three Big Ten Conference games. His brother, Pryce, is not having any problems finding the basket. The younger Sandfort, who will also play for Iowa next year, poured in 28 points to lead the top-ranked Waukee … [Read more...] about No. 1 Wolves win showdown against Centennial boys behind Sandfort’s 28

‘We sure didn’t show any rust’: Clark, Crawford lead Jaguars past Waukee NW

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There was no holiday rust for the Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team. The sixth-ranked Jaguars jumped out to a 23-7 lead and rolled to a 44-30 victory over No. 7 Waukee Northwest in a CIML Conference game on Tuesday at Centennial. "We've been having great practices throughout the break so we were ready to finally get back out on the court and … [Read more...] about ‘We sure didn’t show any rust’: Clark, Crawford lead Jaguars past Waukee NW

‘Our girls continue to impress’: Ankeny extends winning streak to 10 matches

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The Ankeny girls' wrestling team doesn't look like a first-year varsity program to most outside observers. Ankeny extended its dual-meet winning streak to 10 matches by defeating a pair of opponents on Tuesday at West Marshall. Coach Dustin Roland's team rolled to a 70-6 victory over Marshalltown and a 57-24 win over the host Trojans. Ankeny raised its … [Read more...] about ‘Our girls continue to impress’: Ankeny extends winning streak to 10 matches

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Gia Blaser, Ankeny girls’ wrestling

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Senior Gia Blaser of the Ankeny girls' wrestling team currently boasts a 20-6 record. She ranks second on the squad in wins behind Nora Bockes, who is 21-4. Blaser started the season at 145 pounds, but has since dropped down to 140. She placed second in the Raccoon River tournament on Dec. 17 at Adel. Here is some inside info on Blaser: How is the … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Gia Blaser, Ankeny girls’ wrestling

IN THE ZONE: Winkel scores career-high 30, leads No. 4 Jaguars past Ankeny boys

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It's been a dream season thus far for Luke Winkel and the Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team. On Tuesday night, it only got better. Winkel poured in a career-high 30 points and the fourth-ranked Jaguars pulled away in the second half for a 65-46 victory at Ankeny. The win allowed Centennial to take a 10-9 lead in the all-time series and avenged … [Read more...] about IN THE ZONE: Winkel scores career-high 30, leads No. 4 Jaguars past Ankeny boys

Ankeny girls roll to 72-6 victory over Johnston, improve overall record to 8-2

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The Ankeny girls' wrestling team will take an 8-2 record into the holiday break, including a 3-0 mark in the CIML Conference. Ankeny rolled to a 72-6 victory over Johnston on Tuesday at Urbandale. Only three of the matches were contested. "They were very limited in numbers," Ankeny coach Dustin Roland said of the Dragons. Ankeny got a fall from Nora … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls roll to 72-6 victory over Johnston, improve overall record to 8-2

Ankeny girls crown 6 champs at Adel, claim first tourney title in program history

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Saturday was another historic day for the fledgling Ankeny girls' wrestling team. Ankeny crowned six individual champions and captured the first tournament title in program history by winning the Raccoon River Invitational at Adel. The team racked up 222 points. Raccoon River was second in the eight-team event with 178 points. It had lost to Ankeny in … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls crown 6 champs at Adel, claim first tourney title in program history

Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Luke Winkel, Centennial boys’ basketball

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Junior guard Luke Winkel has helped the third-ranked Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team to a 5-1 record, including a 4-1 mark in the CIML Conference. He scored nine points on Friday as the Jaguars suffered their first loss of the season at No. 4 Waukee, where they nearly overcame an 18-point deficit before dropping a 55-52 decision. Winkel is … [Read more...] about Ankeny Fanatic Prep of the Week: Luke Winkel, Centennial boys’ basketball

‘It was a great team effort’: Jaguars nearly pull off miraculous rally at No. 4 Waukee

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The Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball players walked off the court Friday with their heads held high. The third-ranked Jaguars suffered their first loss of the season, but nearly pulled off a miraculous comeback at No. 4 Waukee. After trailing by as many as 18 points, Centennial twice closed to within two points in the fourth quarter before the … [Read more...] about ‘It was a great team effort’: Jaguars nearly pull off miraculous rally at No. 4 Waukee

Crawford, Centennial girls get off to fast start, cruise to road victory at Waukee

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The Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team led from start to finish en route to a 48-29 victory on Friday at Waukee. The eighth-ranked Jaguars jumped out to a 10-0 lead in the first quarter and held a 27-19 advantage at halftime. The No. 12 Warriors couldn't rally in the second half, when they scored just 10 points. "We definitely wanted to get out … [Read more...] about Crawford, Centennial girls get off to fast start, cruise to road victory at Waukee

‘We just found a way’: Centennial boys survive double OT thriller vs. Johnston

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Bob Fontana exhaled in his office after his Ankeny Centennial boys' basketball team survived a double-overtime thriller. "It was definitely a war," Fontana said after the third-ranked Jaguars escaped with a 63-60 victory over visiting Johnston on Tuesday. "Look at how close last Friday's game (at Valley) was--it was tied with a minute to go. Tonight, it … [Read more...] about ‘We just found a way’: Centennial boys survive double OT thriller vs. Johnston

‘We kept battling back’: Jaguars’ upset bid falls short against No. 2 Johnston

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Ankeny Centennial's Averi Porter was hoping to celebrate her birthday with a huge victory. Unfortunately, the Jaguars' upset bid came up just short. The second-ranked Johnston girls' basketball team scored the game's final seven points and escaped with a 46-40 win at No. 6 Centennial on Tuesday. The defending Class 5A state champion Dragons extended … [Read more...] about ‘We kept battling back’: Jaguars’ upset bid falls short against No. 2 Johnston

‘It was a very inspiring performance’: Ankeny girls pin loss on Raccoon River

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It hasn't taken long for the Ankeny girls' wrestling program to establish an identity during its inaugural season. It's a team that can overcome some adversity. On Tuesday at Johnston, Ankeny moved a step closer toward the CIML Conference dual-meet title with a 57-24 victory over Raccoon River. Coach Dustin Roland's squad prevailed despite the absence … [Read more...] about ‘It was a very inspiring performance’: Ankeny girls pin loss on Raccoon River

Ankeny girls place 6th at Saydel tourney behind champs Salgado, Martinez

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The Ankeny girls' wrestling team placed sixth in the Saydel tournament on Monday. A total of 17 squads competed. Ankeny entered 13 wrestlers, many of them junior varsity competitors. "Most of the other schools were varsity squads," said Ankeny assistant coach Olivia Willers. "We had some great individual performances, but overall we were a little flat. … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls place 6th at Saydel tourney behind champs Salgado, Martinez

Ankeny girls’ wrestling team posts 5-0 mark, captures Centennial Duals title

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While the Ankeny Centennial wrestling team earned the title at the Centennial Duals on Saturday, the Ankeny girls' wrestling squad was just as dominant on an adjoining mat. Ankeny easily won the girls' portion of the duals tournament, defeating its five opponents by an average margin of 41.6 points. Coach Dustin Roland's team opened with a 51-24 victory … [Read more...] about Ankeny girls’ wrestling team posts 5-0 mark, captures Centennial Duals title

‘We took care of business’: Centennial girls rebound from loss to beat Ames

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The Ankeny Centennial girls' basketball team bounced back from Friday's loss at Valley with a 65-25 victory at Ames in a non-conference game on Saturday. The sixth-ranked Jaguars raised their record to 6-2. The Little Cyclones dropped to 1-5. "We had a knockdown, dragout game on Friday so we were a little slow at the beginning, but we took care of … [Read more...] about ‘We took care of business’: Centennial girls rebound from loss to beat Ames