After losing nine players to graduation last year, many were quick to count out the Ankeny volleyball team in the preseason, but they may have come back even stronger.

Coming off a state tournament appearance in 2024, the Hawkettes came into the 2025 season ranked ninth behind third-year head coach Liz Baethke. Baethke knew her team’s potential, even if it didn’t show in the rankings.

“It really feels like we just reloaded. I don’t know if other communities thought we would come out this strong,” stated Baethke. The young talent on the Hawkette’s JV team shone at the end of the end of the season as well. ”I think a lot of people saw it towards the end of the season, really putting the hammer down on people.” 

Most of the Hawkettes’ returning offensive production will come from junior Marlee Ellison. As a six-rotation outside hitter this year, Ellison has racked up 118 kills thus far this season.

“I really like being the underdog. We’re ranked ninth right now so we really don’t have any expectation and we come into these games with our heads down wanting to compete even though we know some of these teams have a ton of returners,” Ellison said. “We have a bunch of good girls coming up and I think people just don’t realize that yet.”

Among the new faces to the Hawkettes is senior setter Gwyn Christensen. Christensen has totaled 133 assists in the first 20 matches of the season, with nine of those coming from an August 30th win over Waukee at the Ankeny Centennial Early Bird Tournament. 

“We played Waukee at one of the tournaments and we beat them, and that was super exciting, the energy was just there and then we also played Centennial which was super exciting too. We beat them one of the sets, we fell just short in the third set but that energy was also there and it just makes it more exciting to play our upcoming game against them,” said Christensen.

Many teams are still figuring out lineups and chemistry this early in the season, but the Hawkettes have been competing together since early this summer. Ankeny’s varsity squad competed in Grandview University’s high school volleyball league, as well as competed at a tournament hosted by Creighton University.

“It starts to build the trust between teammates out there on the court and the reserves on the sideline because they start to see tendencies and how they can help and support each other, and just what it gives each kid no matter what their role, an opportunity to get in and demonstrate what they’ve improved on in the off season,” said Baethke.

The competition at Grandview and Creighton may not always be the teams the Hawkettes are seeing during the season, but every game is beneficial.

“They prepare us a lot because we get to play with different lineups and do different things and see different teams, and we just get to play without the pressure of the scoreboard, or the record, or the rankings, and I think it just makes it all more lighthearted than regular season games, which is fun. I also think just building the connection with the team is super important because you have to have the chemistry and everything,” said Christensen.

The team chemistry shined in the first few weeks of the season, as Ankeny has compiled an 11-4 record and a top 5 ranking.

“This year, we’re trying to be super energetic; that’s the top thing we need to do. Be super loud, be super encouraging towards everyone, and it’s definitely been helping a lot when we play teams, and we have higher energy, we just control the game more, and it definitely makes a huge impact,” said Ellison.

Coach Baethke has also noticed the difference in energy on the court, which comes with a change in mentality.

“I think the energy has been night and day. It seems like out there, they don’t care who gets the job done; they just want to feel successful and to continue to grow and have something to measure that by. Every team’s gonna have drama, but it’s how you choose to respond to it is kind of the turning point,” described Baethke.

Ankeny was able to get a big sweep early in the season over #7 Valley. The Hawkettes came in as the underdogs with the #9 ranking, but dominated the match with scores of 25-13, 25-14, and 25-16. Senior Gwyn Christensen had two aces on 100% serving in the match.

“We just want to prove ourselves again, like against Valley, going into it we were ranked under them, and then we swept them. I think we just want to continue to prove ourselves and show that we are a high-level team. Even if we lost a ton of talent last year, we still have the same talent, and I think that it’s just been fun,” stated Christensen.

Tough schedules give the Hawkettes opportunities to prove themselves every night, but it comes with some risks. The CIML conference boasts four of the top five teams in Class 5A and seven of the top fifteen.

“I don’t love it sometimes just because of the heaviness of our schedule. It’s so hard to keep our athletes healthy, and it’s tough to give them a break… but I think for all of us, especially in the CIML, it’s really important that you stay healthy. I think everyone on the CIML teams play all year round, they’re multi-sport athletes on top of it, and it truly is tough trying to keep everybody’s body intact and rested and give recovery and a night off, those are important too, but to also be productive with the time that we have off,” said Baethke.

Ankeny has already played 15 matches this season in just the first few weeks, which is tied for the most as a ranked 5A squad.

“We’ve prepared all summer, and yes we lost a lot of people, but we have a lot of good girls coming up and they’re ready to take on those roles and everyone is just putting their heads down, working hard, and everyone wants to be the best they can be, which is a great mindset to have,” detailed Ellison.

Even with many first-year varsity athletes, the Hawkettes are no strangers to tough competition. Many play on highly-ranked club teams from December to June after the school volleyball season is over.

“Having a strong JV last year builds the talent, and with such a deep roster, we can put anyone in and they would be successful. Our two sophomores come in, they’ve played a lot of high-level club bal,l and so have a lot of people on the team, so it just makes the transition easier from playing a lower level to playing at a higher level for the girls,” said Christensen.

Making the transition together was a big focus for the team this year, which shows in their motto, “with each other, for each other.”

“I’d say we’re really working this year on being a team, everyone’s included and we’re doing this for each other, we’re playing for each other, we don’t want to focus on the distractions around us, this is all for us,” stated Ellison.

Playing for each other is important on the court, but making those relationships begins off the court.

“When we have a tight bond with the team and when everyone is playing, it’s not just for yourself but for the team and continuing to get better for the team… It just makes everyone want to compete and play for each other,” said Christensen.

It is up to the Ankeny seniors to choose the motto for the season, but coach Baethke has been pushing this mentality for a while.

“I want them to think of something that reflects what they want from the season, and after last year, when you graduate so many starters and seniors that are very gifted athletes, the big question mark is who’s going to step up and fill those shoes?” Baethke said. “We talk about the good pieces that we could pull from last year and the year before, and then we talk about the pieces that we don’t ever want back again. It sort of seemed like the collective thought was, you’ve got to play for something or someone other than yourself.”.

Playing for one another will give the Hawkettes some extra motivation as they head into the heat of the season.

“Our goals for the season is just never give up, no matter what game we’re in, because we’re playing tough competition, we’re playing girls that have started for two or three years, and like I said we’re the underdogs, so we’re just coming into these games just preparing ourselves and working hard at every single practice and just acting like every point is game point,” said Ellison.

Ankeny is putting in the work to make it back to the state tournament and prove themselves competing with the best of the best.

“It just seems like we have so much unfinished business left out there, and I really want us to push all the way to the end and not stop and not be happy with anything until we reach that point,” stated Baethke.