CENTERVILLE — The phrase “Leave a place better than you found it,” sums up the three Centerville High School senior girls basketball players.

The Tornado trio — Keira Austin, Althea Gust and Emma Marshall — have been the driving force behind the program’s rise atop the Class B ranks. They’ve been instrumental in turning around the program, which didn’t have varsity basketball in 2016-17 and slowly ascended into a Class B powerhouse. 

It culminated with last season’s Class B state championship, a first in program history. 

“These kids decided to weather the storm, took some big losses and played through a lot of adversity,” Centerville coach Tucker Tornberg said. “To see that come to fruition last year with a state title was kind of just the culmination of all of the work and the effort and the behind the scenes stuff that they do and that’s kind of the epitome of this group of seniors is they go beyond what is expected.”

Austin and Gust joined the varsity program as seventh graders in the 2019-20 season, with Tornberg saying it was out of necessity and they were both ready to make the jump.  

But Austin and Gust experienced growing pains as young Tornadoes. 

“It’s a hard position to get thrown into,” Austin said. “Especially when you haven’t been winning very many games. But then you also don’t have that pressure on you right away, which also helped because we weren't expected to do much. So you just have to go in and do your best and prove to your coach what you can do.”

“It was fun because there wasn't any pressure on us to do anything,” Gust added. “Sometimes we would just come to the game and make a couple threes and everybody was just hyping us up. Because they didn't really expect anything from us. Sometimes that’s what our team needed, especially when we were down a lot.”

Centerville's Keira Austin (1) attacks the basket against Ethan on Jan. 18, 2025 in Mitchell. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Centerville compiled records of 9-13 and 10-12 in the 2019-20 and 2020-21 seasons, respectively. But the foundation was established as Austin and Gust developed along with the other young Tornadoes. 

“I think that experience for them has been a growing experience,” Tornberg said. “I think it’s a confidence builder and I think it is something they are passing on to future generations of Tornadoes.” 

Centerville continued to turn the corner with back-to-back winning seasons, going 20-3 in 2021-22 and 17-5 in 2022-23. 

The Tornadoes then received a boost when Marshall transferred from Irene-Wakonda, giving them another offensive weapon and an all-state caliber player. 

“I couldn’t have asked for a better program to transfer into,” Marshall said. “The team was super welcoming. I was coming in going to take a starting spot possibility and no one ever really held that against me. The team welcomed me with open arms and the fans showed unconditional support with me transferring.”

Marshall had previous experience playing AAU basketball with some of the Tornadoes, and they were excited to now have her as a teammate.  

“To finish out senior year — especially having Emma on our team now — not being a rival has been a very fun experience for all three of us,” said Austin, who along with Gust will attend South Dakota State University.   

“It’s definitely been a lot more fun playing with her,” Gust said. “I remember like freshman year I had to face guard her and that wasn't always fun. I feel like you can tell us three are always assisting each other and hyping each other up. You can just tell we’ve played together a lot.”

For Marshall, it’s also been a joy to have Austin and Gust as teammates. 

“It’s so much better to have them on my team than against me,” said Marshall, who will play basketball and run track at Dakota State University. “I think I have guarded Althea since fifth grade and she guarded me. So you eventually know each other from guarding each other. It’s definitely been a benefit to have them on my team than against me.” 

Marshall’s addition bolstered their backcourt and state championship aspirations. In 2023-24, Centerville finished with a 24-2 record and its first-ever state championship. 

Centerville’s state championship was unexpected to many, but Tornberg knew the ingredients were there for something special. 

“We knew we had a special group,” Tornberg said. “To say you could predict a state championship — there’s so many variables as you know — in what is a long season of basketball that I don’t know if a person could ever predict that. We knew it was going to be a special season because we had a special group of kids.”

Centerville's Emma Marshall (25) delivers a pass against Ethan on Jan. 18, 2025 in Mitchell. (Rodney Haas / 605 Sports)

Centerville’s three seniors have left their marks on the Tornado record books. Gust has scored 1,520 career points, has dished out 355 assists and has 261 3-pointers. She’s averaging 11.5 points, 3.5 assists and three assists per game this season. 

Austin has scored 667 points, has dished out 153 assists and has drilled 151 3-pointers. She’s currently averaging 6.5 points, 2.6 assists and 2.1 steals per game. 

Between Centerville and Irene-Wakonda, Marshall has logged 1,610 career points, 689 rebounds, 227 steals and 79 blocked shots. She’s averaging 16.3 points, eight assists, 3.6 blocked shots and 3.2 steals per game. 

Tornberg said the trio is an extension of the coaching staff, and they’re ready to shine in big moments on the court. 

And their impact will be felt for future Tornadoes. 

“They are going to leave that impact forever,” Tornberg said. “Last year was special. This year is special. But the impact they are having on future generations too isn't going to end after this year. Because they are going to have a lasting impact on Centerville basketball.”