RAPID CITY — The Centerville Tornadoes started from the bottom and now they’re here. 

Centerville, which was without a high school girls basketball team in 2016-17, is the Class B girls basketball champs. 

Centerville climbed the Class B ladder unlike any other state champ, culminating with a resounding 62-44 win over Arlington for the state championship on Saturday at the Summit Arena. 

“For us to not have a varsity program just seven years ago and to be state champions, that’s pretty surreal,” Centerville coach Tucker Tornberg said. “I don't know what else to say.”

The Centerville Tornadoes including Althea Gust (3), Keira Austin, second from right, and Emma Marshall celebrate their win over Arlington in the girls Class B state championship on Saturday at Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City. (Matt Gade / For 605 Sports)

The Tornadoes took the long road to the state championship, including no high school team in 2016-17, 50-to-60 point losses and three straight single-digit win seasons. Centerville (24-2) are now state champs for the first time in program history. 

“I remember playing as a seventh-grader, like I started and we were not good,” Centerville senior Lillie Eide said. “It was crazy. We are the state champions now. It’s literally insane. I don’t even understand, but it’s amazing.” 

Centerville officially punctuated the championship tour with a convincing win over Arlington (23-3). The Tornadoes led from start to finish, played efficiently and weathered a late Cardinals’ surge for the title. 

“The second half we kind of came out rocky,” Centerville senior Makayla Heesch said. “But right away we started amazing. We set the tone and we brought it to them. We didn’t hold anything back. When it got rocky, we settled down and we came back and won.”

The Tornadoes placed four players in double figures, led by Heesch’s 15 points and seven rebounds. Emma Marshall (14 points/9 rebounds), Althea Gust (13 points/five rebounds) and Eide (12 points/7 rebounds) all scored in double digits.

Centerville shot 22 of 45 from the field, including 8 of 13 in the second half. The Tornadoes dished out 12 assists on their 22 made baskets. 

“That’s been us all year,” Tornberg said. “We have a lot of kids that could score 20-30 a night. But they are selfless players. They understand that balance is better and they are so selfless.”

The Centerville Tornadoes fill in the bracket after defeating the Arlington Cardinals for the girls Class B state championship on Saturday at Summit Arena at The Monument in Rapid City. (Matt Gade / For 605 Sports)

The selflessness was on display in an impressive first half. The Tornadoes blew past the Cardinals for a 34-14 lead at halftime and drilled four 3-pointers in the first half 

“We had an awesome start and we kept saying, ‘Don’t let down. Keep going’ and that’s what we did,” Eide said. “We kind of struggled a little bit against their press, but we got it figured out and it was good.”

The Cardinals made a push in the second half, but the lead was too unsurmountable and Centerville coasted down the stretch. 

“Kudos to Arlington,” Tornberg said. “I think they are a heckuva team. I think the press is really good. We told them at halftime they were going to turn that on. So we knew it was coming, but our girls have shown so much composure in this state tournament and they really demonstrated their mental toughness and we made the plays when we had to.”

Arlington’s Addalyn Steffensen logged 15 points and three rebounds. Jolyssa Steffensen added 10 points, while Harley Johnson scored nine points and eight rebounds. Jaelyn Huntimer scored seven points for Arlington, which was making its first-ever state championship berth.

The Tornadoes were making their first title game appearance since 2006. Centerville, which graduates Heesch, Eide and Kiylee Westra, will head into the next season as favorites to repeat. 

But for now, Centerville and its purple-clad fans relished the win that was seven years in the making.     

“Our community is awesome,” Heesch said. “Everyone feels this championship win. Everyone is enjoying it and is having so much fun and it’s just the start. They are going to keep going from here.”