In his third season with the Ankeny girls basketball team, head coach Nate Tobey looks to lead the Hawkettes to the Casey’s Center for the first time since Ankeny and Ankeny Centennial split. So far, the Hawkettes have compiled an 8-2 record, led by a starting lineup boasting four returning starters from last season.

“[The returning starters have] been a major factor for us, their confidence and experience, they’ve seen so many different situations and are comfortable navigating so many different things,” said Tobey. “They’ve just been tremendous leaders for our program since the spring, and we appreciate that.”

One key player returning for the Hawkettes is senior Ainsley Kiene, who will be stepping into a bigger role this season and using her experience to help the Hawkettes succeed.

“Being a senior, you’ve been in it for a while, and you know how a lot of things work, so I think having four people with a lot of knowledge in the game and being leaders is really just helpful for all of our team,” said Kiene.

All four returning starters for Ankeny are in their senior season, and have used their leadership and experience to help guide the team. The fifth starter is a freshman, Ali Aguirre, who has already made an impact.

“She’s had to really learn on the fly here, and we’ve been really impressed with her ability to do that, and she is just a worker; she just wants to win and has a really mature mindset for a freshman,” said Tobey.

Aguirre has played a big role in Ankeny’s success this season, averaging 9.7 points and 4.3 rebounds per game.

“The seniors have taught me so much, and, whenever I have a question, I can go and ask them, and I know that they’re gonna give me the best answer that they can think of, and they’ve just helped me grow a lot as a player, just on and off the court of just doing things the right way,” said Aguirre.

The Hawkettes will have to continue to rack up some big wins this year to reach their biggest goal, qualifying for the state tournament for the first time since 2013.

“We’re just bought into the work and [we] try to put ourselves in the best possible position at the end of the year to be where we need to be,” said Tobey. “And to not have to play an elite team in the substate like this program has had to do several times over the last few years.”

Ankeny was able to participate in preseason camps and scrimmages to get a look at the team before the season and start building their chemistry.

“It helps us get a good look of what works and what doesn’t while playing against other schools, and we get to see how other schools are built this year, and so we have an idea of when we play them, how we were supposed to guard them, and what type of playing style they have,” said Aguirre.

The time spent together also helps create a positive team culture, allowing the team to jump right into practices and games when the season starts.

“I feel like everyone on our team is super close, so we have really good chemistry on the court and off the court. Our bench is super involved and super energetic,” said Kiene.

Aguirre and Kiene have already played in some big games for the Hawkettes this season. Ankeny started the season ranked 8th, but the Jan. 7 IGHSAU rankings moved them up to 3rd, one spot above the Valley Tigers, who Ankeny beat 65-46 on Dec. 2.

“The environment of that game was really fun. I think our bench and just everybody on the court had a lot of energy and we were all playing well as a team,” said Kiene.

Energy is essential in a conference like the CIML, which boasts some of the top teams in the state. The Jan. 7 IGHSAU girls basketball rankings have CIML members as the top five teams in Class 5A.

“We’re just taking it one game at a time, trying to do our best every time, and learning from our mistakes, so we can improve and come back stronger in the next game,” said Aguirre.