By Rich Winter

605 Sports

Coming off a 12-10 season, and with the loss of senior stalwarts ​​Haley Meyer and Ellie Hunter, most people figured the Centerville girls would go back to rebuilding. 

Within the Centerville program, and having a number of underclassmen play significant roles a year ago, stepping back was not an option. 

“A lot of people pegged us as going down,” Centerville girls coach Tucker Tornberg said. “We knew that with all of these young kids getting experience that 2021-2022 could be a special year.”

The Tornadoes went on a tear this season wrapping up their regular season with an 18-2 record. After two Region 5B games the team qualified for the SoDak 16 as a No. 8 seed. The season ended with a 45-36 loss to Aberdeen Christian. 

Less than a week after that SoDak 16 loss sophomore Lillie Eide is already motivated to get back in the gym. 

“This season was super exciting to win that many games,” Eide said. “Making the SoDak 16 and losing is very motivating for us to go back next year and win.” 

Tornberg recalls the specific moment he knew this year was going to be special.

“It was after our third game (Estelline/Hendricks) and our only senior Sophie Eide looked around and smiled and said, ‘I don’t know about you girls but I’m having a ton of fun,’ ” Tornberg said. “These girls have taken some lumps and endured 50-point losses and that was the pivotal moment that made this year a blast.” 

Junior Bailey Hansen attacks the rim during the SoDak 16 game with Aberdeen Christian

Freshman Thea Gust led the Tornadoes in scoring (15 ppg). Tornberg called Gust an unselfish player who easily could have scored 20-25 points per game. 

Entering the season Gust wasn’t sure what to expect. 

“We lost a couple of really good seniors so it was really exciting to only have two losses during the season,” Gust said. 

With the Class B state tournament starting Thursday, Gust is driven by those teams that are still playing. 

“Seeing all the other teams make it makes me want to get there so bad,” she said. 

Sophomore Makayla Heesch transferred from Garretson this summer. After getting to know the team and settling in she had a terrific year. 

“This whole season has been super exciting, kinda nerve wracking and an all-around good experience,” she said. 

Freshman Keira Austin has played varsity since her seventh-grade year and said one of the best things about this season was seeing a super-charged Centerville crowd and student section. 

Thornberg echoed those sentiments recalling years where the gym was fairly empty to only being half-full for a region game. 

“Our community has been fantastic,” he said. “You looked up from the Corn Palace floor and I bet 75 percent of our community was there and our entire student body was there. That was really special to see what sports can bring to a small community.” 

Following the loss to Aberdeen Christian Tornberg reflected on the breakout season while still in the lockerroom with his girls. 

“We grieved for our only senior and really wanted her to get to state,” he said. “We kinda sat back and reflected on the positive talking about the last five years and the growth we’ve made.” 

The next step was assessing what’s next. 

“OK, we’re disappointed now but how are we going to take it to the next level,” he said. “To see how close we were was a unique moment for us to reflect on the entire season and start thinking about next year.” 

Sophomore MaKayla Heesch is part of a large number of girls that will return for Centerville in 2022/2023