DAMAGE PATH

There are moments when all seems lost, when it looks like the lowest point has been reached and it feels almost impossible to keep fighting. In sports, every team can have those tough times, where the strength to keep going seems to have run out.

But, as they say, what doesn't kill you makes you stronger, and when it comes to area girls basketball, there have been plenty of instances where teams have risen from the ashes.

Perhaps no team better exemplifies that then the Turner girls.

The Tornadoes have been on a rise that has been spanning across the past three seasons. The progression the Turner girls have made has been quite incredible. It has been a great journey for the team, and Turner head coach Julie Welsh knows the many factors that have gotten the Tornadoes from that low point to today.

"The girls have developed a team-like atmosphere and the desire to win, not just participate," Welsh said after a game in Dodson last week. "There's a difference between participating and winning, and they know it. They know it takes hours in the gym and in the summer. It takes dedication not only to themselves, but to the rest of team. Darci Ammen, my assistant, has just been invaluable as far as the realm of knowledge she helps bring to the program."

There has been a lot of climbing over the years for the Turner girls, particularly after the season in which Turner didn't have enough girls to field a varsity team. However, by the 2016-2017 season things started to change for the Tornadoes, who won eight games that year,

The 2017-2018 season then saw history in the making. Turner went 13-10 overall, placed third at the 9C tourney and made it to divisionals. It was Turner's first trip to the Northern C in two decades, and it was truly a remarkable run.

Last year, Turner proved it was no fluke, either. In the 2018-2019 season, the Tornadoes put up a 15-8 record and another trip to divisionals. And there, more steps were taken as Turner nearly knocked off Box Elder in the semifinals, then came within one win of making it to state.

Now, the run continues. With the 9C tourney just two weeks away, Turner is sitting near the top of the conference standings, and another trip to Great Falls is the ultimate goal.

The veteran players on Turner's team remember those struggles, though, including junior Shyan Krass, who recalls some of the tough moments the team experienced in the past, as well as what the team has done to make the program better since then.

"I just remember having a hard time with it coming together," Krass said. "Now, everybody's kind of got to that bigger level this year and the year before. We've put in a lot of summer work, shooting and just playing on the time as a team. We've been getting together a lot and getting closer to each other."

The senior member of the Tornadoes, Sarah Billmayer, remembers those times, too, but has seen many big moments happen for the team that have put the program where it is now.

"We've been working hard since we were little," Billmayer said. "We always get in the gym when we can and that helps a lot. We've all just come together real well and we all just click. It's really nice. In the past, Turner hasn't really had teams that have clicked as well as we have right now."

As the veterans of the Tornadoes have been pushing their limits to bring about the best for their team, the young group of athletes have been cooking up a storm that looks to wreak havoc in the future if 9C.

Turner has a good number of eighth graders on the team this year. Players like Gracie Honey, Hannah Richman, Paycee Leo, Katie Kimmel and Emma Billmayer have been watching and waiting for their chance to help the program rise this year and in the future. With such a great group of young talent ready to make some noise on the court, there is so much to look forward to in the future.

Emma Billmayer watched the Turner girls who came before her compete for quite some time and now to be a part of it is surreal for her. Not only is the young athlete ready to do her best for the future of the program, but she knows her team has good goals going forward, too.

"I think it's a big difference from junior high basketball and all that stuff," she said. "But, it's definitely fun. We want to be more into the game and be more aggressive. We've had different coaches throughout the years and I think there's going to be some good players coming up. I'm really excited to see them all grow as basketball players."

Once upon a time, the Turner girls were literally an after though in the 9C. They went years without winning a tournament game. But with the Class of 2016 now watching from the stands, things have shifted up near the Canadian border. Now, Turner is a girls hoops hotbed, and if this season is any indication, the Tornadoes have no intentions of slowing down.