The harder the climb, the sweeter the success.

That adage can't be traced to a Century girls basketball player, but they've certainly made the climb.

The Patriots tasted the sweet nectar of success merely by earning the right to play Fargo South in today's 6 p.m. game at the state Class Agirls basketball tournament.

"It was really a rough year and it's such an accomplishment to go to the state tournament," said senior guard Tasha Michelsen. "This year we proved a lot."

The Patriots are making their sixth straight state tourney appearance, but this time is different. Heavy graduation losses, injuries and roller coaster-like inconsistency dogged the team from the first day of practice.

Last spring the nucleus that had made possible five top three state finishes in six years departed. Coach Jim Jeske left, too, leaving his successor, RonMetz, to start almost from scratch.

Only two seniors - Michelsen and Katrina Jangula - grace the current CHSroster and only Michelsen and sophomore Madi Buck began the season with meaningful varsity experience. Michelsen, who leads the team in 3-pointers and is third in assists, averages 9.8 points per game.

"First off we were rebuilding," said the 5-foot-7 Michelsen. "After we lost two starters that made it harder. But we kept our heads up and had a lot of room to grow."

Starters Erika Jossart, a sophomore, and Jessica Sitz, a junior, were peeled away from the team early. Both were sidelined in December with knee injures that required surgery.

"Erika was our point guard , so we had to make a huge adjustment," Michelsen said. "It's been really tough missing her this season. … I moved to point guard and Jess (Sitz) moved into the lineup. Then after the Williston and St. Mary's games she got hurt at practice."

Plus, the Patriots were playing without another junior, Beth Gordon. Gordon's season began a month late. Coming off knee surgery that cost her her sophomore season, Gordon was slowed by an injury the second day of preseason practice.

Century struggled out of the blocks, but then took off on a promising four-game winning streak to improve to 5-2.

Then, more adversity. The first week in January the Patriots lost 72-57 at home to previously winless Turtle Mountain.

"We had a team meeting the next morning," Michelsen said. "… It was a pretty bad loss, and we came into the gym (for the meeting) with our heads down. Coach said 'Just forget about it and prepare for the next game. We've just got to let those games go.'"

Metz said his top priority was to keep his team from giving in mentally.

"We were tested a lot," he said. "… It would have been pretty easy to let these things become excuses, but they never did that. We tried to be as positive as possible because there's nothing we can do about these things that can happen."

Four days after the Turtle Mountain setback the Patriots upset then second-ranked Jamestown 54-50 in the Olson gym.

"Before we played Turtle Mountain we were a little overconfident,"Michelsen said. "… After that loss we definitely had a lot to prove and we had Jamestown next. …We kept our heads in the game and never got down and came out with a win."

But the Patriots did not live happily ever after. Losses to top-ranked Bismarck and Dickinson ensued, and Century was unable to run off more than two straight victories the rest of the way.

Then, with the West Region tournament looming, CHSclosed the regular season with tough losses to Minot and Jamestown and a 16-point setback at the hands of BismarckHigh.

Still,Michelsen said the Patriots hadn't lost sight of their goals.

"We had some tough games at the end of the season, but it was tournament time and we had to forget about the regular season and keep our heads up," Michelsen said.

Century's zero momentum carried over into the first round of the regional tourney, a 61-53 loss to Minot.

"Everyone was down after the loss to Minot and coach told us to keep our heads up,"Michelsen said. "… It was kind of like a wakeup call. We had to win two games in two days."

No sweat. The Patriots outlasted Williston 71-64 on Friday and upset Jamestown, then ranked fourth, 55-53 on Saturday.

Michelsen said the Jamestown game was up for grabs for 35-plus minutes. "It was a very intense game. … I've never played in that intense a game before. … It just came down to who wanted it more," she said.

So Century, by now on a first-name basis with adversity, gets to play in the state tournament on its home turf.

Michelsen, who said it's unlikely she'll play college sports, is thrilled to get another week of basketball.

"Making it to state, that was our biggest goal. It was a huge accomplishment," she said. "Now we have nothing to lose. We'll just give it our all. … The Jamestown game was a great win. It gave us a lot of confidence. I think that set the tone for the state tournament."

Metz said the win over Jamestown should serve as a momentum-builder for this week.

"Hopefully that shows us we can compete at that level because Jamestown is a very good team," he said.

Michelsen's senior season certainly hasn't been non-stop fun, but she emphasizes it's definitely been rewarding.

"It's just kind of been a rough season for us,"she said. "… There are a lot of young girls on the team, and I'm really proud of them. They stepped up and did a tremendous job this season. … I'm amazed at how well our sophomores and juniors stepped up."