2025-2026 State Basketball: Game Report - Johnston VS Ankeny

The Johnston Dragons faced off against the Ankeny Hawkettes this morning in the 5A Semifinals with a shot at the State Title game on the line. When the final buzzer sounded, the Dragons nearly escaped the Hawkettes by a final count of 49-39.   Below we highlight the prospects that stood out the most as producers for each side.   Thanks for tuning in and enjoy!    Motor, engine, life-force, how ever you want to put it, that's what [player_tooltip player_id='557354' first='Jenica' last='Lewis'] was to start this Semifinal battle on Thursday morning for the Dragons. Lewis started things off by hitting a wide open three point from the Wing. From there, she let her defense do the talking with multiple steals and buckets in transition throughout the rest of the first half. In the second, it was a lot more of Lewis for the Dragons. She was one of the only prospects consistently hitting three pointers, getting to the free throw line for AND1 opportunities, and posting up looking for shots under the bucket on each possession. In the end, the Dragons pulled out the victory, 49-39. They will face the winner of Waukee NW and Dowling tomorrow night at 6PM at the Casey Center.     Ankeny didn't have a ton of positives in the first half but the one's that they did were because of [player_tooltip player_id='342205' first='Jayla' last='Williams'] or [player_tooltip player_id='1201513' first='Ali' last='Aguirre']. To start off Williams racked up multiple steals defensively while jumping in the passing lanes, she got to the rim with crafty spin moves going both directions, and she was flying all over the court for loose balls - giving maximum effort on each possession. When it came to the second, Williams took over even more for Hawkettes. She was determined to get all the way to the basket for tough finishes off the bounce on offensive while staying scrappy and disciplined on D. This might have been the last high school game we see Williams suit up for but her basketball career is long from over. She will be at Creighton next season, competing with the Bluejays for the foreseeable future. This is a collegiate program that Williams should be able to get onto the floor as a Freshman right away because of her defensive prowess but we will just have to wait and see as we follow her journey moving forward.     Ankeny got their day started offensively with [player_tooltip player_id='1201513' first='Ali' last='Aguirre'] scoring some buckets near the hoop and then working out from there. Aguirre's mixture of size and feel for the game stood out as a determine factor throughout the entire duration of this battle. She posted her matchups near the bucket for simple finishes through contact, she stepped out to screen and pass, and she rebounded on both ends at a seemingly high rate. Aguirre was more of a factor in the first half than in the second but that's something she will learn from as she gets older. She was only a Freshman season so I'm sure she will return even better as a Sophomore after another off-season of work.     The ability that [player_tooltip player_id='644557' first='Ari' last='Phillips'] has to get to her spots on the offensive side of the ball always shocks me a little bit. It's eye-opening. In any situation or spacing, Phillips can get into open space for a clean look at the basket. Sometimes it's off the dribble, sometimes it's off the cut, sometimes it's off of her team's action on offense but no matter which it is, it's usually for an open look down-hill. We saw the time and time again in this contest. It wasn't just in the first half but throughout the entire game. She was finding spots in the middle of the defense off of her movement and her teammates were hitting her with assists for open layup looks. Phillips is going to be a vital key to her team's chances of winning this 5A title. She is going to be dared to step up in the Championship game as well, no matter who they have to play so it's going to be important to see how she responds to that.     We saw Kinnetz this entire game but she didn't show up until the end of the third when she hit a big three off of a screen. Other than that, she did her job throughout. She kept moving, she cut off of the ball, she screened using her body - opening up her teammates to the middle of the floor, and most importantly - she didn't really turn it over in any big situations. The Guard play is going to be the thing that carries Johnston to another 5A Title tomorrow night so I'm expecting Kinnetz to show out with one game left in her high school career. You could tell that she was frustrated with some situations on the floor so I can't wait to see how she responds with one more game on the line before she takes her talents to the D2 level.

The Johnston Dragons faced off against the Ankeny Hawkettes this morning in the 5A Semifinals with a shot at the State Title game on the line. When the final buzzer sounded, the Dragons nearly escaped the Hawkettes by a final count of 49-39.