LAFAYETTE >> Rome wasn’t built in a day, and neither was Centaurus softball.

When head coach Micci Reed first took over the program during the 2021 season, the Warriors failed to win a single game, instead losing 22. Three years later, they’re battling for a spot in the postseason with a 15-8 record.

Immediately following Centaurus’ 11-1 victory over Battle Mountain on Saturday afternoon, it stood at No. 35 in CHSAA’s Selection & Seeding Index, which is used to formulate the regional tournament brackets. Only the top 32 teams in Class 4A will advance to the postseason.

Reed’s indelible mark on the program, as well as a zap of energy from an exceptional freshman class, has pushed the Warriors to new heights on the diamond, something that would have been unimaginable in her first year.

“I think this is the most wins we’ve had, maybe, in the records that I can find,” Reed said. “As we started climbing and getting some more wins, you see more enthusiasm. You see more and more people being interested, so we have, naturally, more numbers. The seniors this year are girls that have been with me from the start, and they’ve really seen the program just transform.”

Culture, Reed said, has experienced the biggest metamorphosis. This year especially, the Warriors have weaved a web of support and collective responsibility in games, as well as an infusion of joy that had been previously missing.

The freshman bats certainly haven’t hurt either, as Emery Fannin (33 RBIs, 35 hits, 40 runs), Emi Sanders (24 RBIs, 27 hits, 28 runs), Morgan Sizemore (23 RBIs, 23 hits, 31 runs) and Kaitlyn Long (23 RBIs, 39 hits, 47 runs) have brought the heat all season long.

All of it was front and center during their five-inning win over the Huskies. Through every hit, every Battle Mountain error — of which there were many — the Warriors cheered each other on from the dugout and played as a single organism through constant communication.

First baseman Fannin highlighted that freshman fortitude on a deep fly ball that fell just short of the centerfield fence during the bottom of the second inning. She settled for a triple but knocked in her only RBI in the process.

That, Fannin said, has been a work in progress from the first game to the last.

“We’re getting stronger. We’re definitely building up our experience,” she said. “We’ve improved a lot, even our fielding, our batting. We had good batting at the start of the season and it was pretty good, but as the season has gone on, it’s been on fire. Personally, at the beginning, I was hitting a lot of grounders, not really big hits, but now I feel like I’m definitely hitting them further. I feel like I’m getting more runs, and same with a lot of other people.”

Senior Brooke Bueche carried the batting honor of the day with a team-high two RBIs, as the Warriors in full earned just four runs batted in. Sophomore ace Nora Midness put together a one-hit, one-unearned run, four-strikeout performance from the circle to keep the Warrior defense steady from the top.

She credited Reed for the team’s rise over the past few seasons and knows that no matter what happens when CHSAA releases the brackets on Monday, the Warriors will be better for her guidance this year and beyond.

“I think it has a lot to do with our amazing coach,” Midness said. “She’s really helped push and grow this program and, of course, the freshmen and all the new girls this year have really helped. I would really be nowhere without my defense. They’re just really amazing this year. They’ve been backing me up really well.”

Reed, for her part, said she’ll try not to be too glued to CHSAA’s website on Monday. No matter where the Warriors fall — inside or just outside of the top 32 teams — she knows that the future is blindingly bright for a program on the brink.

After all, Midness and the freshman class behind her will be returning to the diamond next year.

“I think one more win, maybe, against a 4A school — we had a tight game against Loveland that probably, if we would have pulled that out, it would look different for us right now,” Reed said. “We’ll take it. We’ll get grinding on some development here early summer.”