Hunting for their fourth set of six-or-more consecutive state titles since 1975 and 31st in school history, the Minot High boys’ swimming and diving team showed their defending-champion prowess in a defeat of the Jamestown Blue Jays in their 2022-2023 home opener.

Establishing an almost mythical legacy in the sport of boys’ swimming and diving, Minot High has not only reigned over high school pools across North Dakota for over four decades, but has also convinced many familiar with the Magicians’ story that their collective ability to seemingly turn all water they touch into state-championship gold has them resembling Midas as much as Poseidon.

Dating their legendary origin story back to 1975, the Magi swim and dive team has amassed an unrivaled 30 North Dakota state titles and 40 West Region titles over the past half-century of competition, as they continue their quest to add even more spoils to a trophy case laden with accolades.

Adding to the impressiveness of their ongoing 47-year rule of pools across the prairie, Minot High has redefined the word ‘dynasty’, putting together stretches of six consecutive state titles over three different periods of time.

Of these dynamic runs of dominance, none eclipse the 12-year span from 1999-2011, the longest in school history.

Entering the heart of the 2022-2023 season, the Magi have their eyes set not just on adding a fourth stretch of six-or-more consecutive state championships to their resume, but the rights to claim a 31st year as the kings of the North Dakota swimming and diving hierarchy.

Despite the graduation of standouts Peyton Bartsch and 2022 NDHSCA Outstanding Senior Athlete award-winner Grant Schaeffer, Minot High’s head coach and NDHSCA Coach of the Year Jake Solper and his assistant coaches Ken Disher, Peyton Huss, Barbara McPeak, and Gerald Brown return seven All-State swimming and diving honorees from last year’s team to an already talent-loaded Magi roster.

Led by First Team All-State competitors Jaron Coombs, Ryan Hubbard, Alex King, Jaxon Reinke, Oliver Roongin, and Ty Ross, along with Second Team All-State member Logan Hill, the Magi headed into their first home dual of the 2022-2023 season against the Jamestown Blue Jays on Friday, coming off a commanding first-place finish at the Mandan Pentathlon on Dec. 29.

Packing the Magic City Campus natatorium to support their home team as they embarked on another defense of their swimming and diving title, exuberant Magi fans comprised of family, friends, and peers were treated to a captivating rendition of the National Anthem by a Lindsay Kerzmann-led Change of Pace ensemble before action in the lanes got underway.

Wasting no time in asserting their dominance in the first event of the dual, Minot High would take three of the four top spots in the 200-yard medley relay, with the team of Carter Larson, Ryan Hubbard, Alex King, and Jaxon Reinke claiming first by nearly 10 seconds over the second-place team of Jamestown’s Caleb Fabian, Bodi Haglund, Ethan Igl, and Teddy Solensky.

Events 2 and 3, the 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard individual medley, again saw Minot putting on a show for the home crowd, sweeping the top-three spots in both races in a blistering opening to the contest.

Perhaps more importantly, Magi swimmers Logan Hill, Paradorn Roongin, and Levi VonBokern proceeded to post state-qualifying times in the 200-yard freestyle, while Jaxon Reinke and Matt Boen posted state-qualifying times in the 200-yard individual medley.

Riding the momentum of their dominant start, the defending champions continued to crank up their vice-like pressure throughout the following races, scoring points in bunches and seeing Alex King, Ryan Hubbard, Gianmarco Renda, Kaden Fabian, Carter Larson, and Bodi Haglund all secure a spot in the state tournament in a variety of events.

Even more impressive, Minot High’s Reinke would post a time worthy of Second Team All-State recognition with a 54.12 in the 100-yard butterfly, along with Roongin swimming his way to Second Team All-State honors thanks to his time of 1:01.18 in the 100-yard breaststroke.

Despite the dual being all but decided early on in the matchup, those that stuck around for the eighth event, the 500-yard freestyle, had the pleasure of witnessing arguably the most inspiring moment of the evening.

As determined Magi senior Landon Shaw pushed his way down the lane and through the punishing final 50 yards of his race, he was fueled by the rousing cheers and screams of not only the Minot High faithful, but also the Jamestown Blue Jays fans, coaches, and swimmers, who joined the passionate chorus of support that would guide him to the finish.

Eventually, when the smoke finally cleared on Friday’s home-opening dual, what remained was a 134-48 early-season West Region victory for the reigning state champion Magi, as they continue the arduous defense of their swimming and diving throne.

When asked what he enjoys most about his team’s home openers, Coach Solper responded, “More than anything, it gives many parents and fans their first opportunity of the season to see the team in action, given that it can often be difficult to attend away games because of work or other conflicts in people’s schedules.”

Following Friday’s home-opener win over Jamestown, the defending champion Magi make a stop in Williston for a dual on Jan. 14 as they continue their push for title No. 31.

Jamestown @ Minot Dual – 1/6/2023

Boys 200 Yard Medley Relay:

1. Minot High School ‘A’ (Larson, Carter 10, Hubbard, Ryan 12, King, Alex 12,

Reinke, Jaxon 12), 1:42.55; 2. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND ‘A’ (Fabian, Caleb 10,

Haglund, Bodi 10, Igl, Ethan 12, Solensky, Teddy H 12), 1:51.52; 3. Minot High

School ‘B’ (Dodds, Kaden 12, Harris, Benjamin 10, Renda, Gianmarco 11, Dodds,

Jaxon 9), 1:54.64; 4. Minot High School ‘C’ (Baldwin, Brayden 10, Ricks, Alex

11, Williamson, Otto 10, Shaw, Conner 10), x2:12.69; –. Minot High School ‘D’

(Solper, Tayson 8, Burns, Tyler 10, Ross, Ty 11, Huss, Trevor 12), X2:11.04;

–. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND ‘B’ (Olson, Nicholas 9, Klabo, Tyler 8, Kaiser,

Cruz 10, Lynch, Noah 10), DQ; –. Minot High School ‘E’ (Shaw, Landon 12,

Withers, Carter 11, Sherlock, Bryan 11, Mason, Keegan 9), XDQ; –. Minot High

School ‘F’ (Thompson, Jaxson 9, Armes, Parker 9, Baldwin, Malychi 9, Summers,

Logan 10), XDQ.

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle:

1. Hill, Logan, Magicians, 1:54.88; 2. Roongin, Paradorn, Magicians, 1:55.31;

3. VonBokern, Levi, Magicians, 2:02.05; 4. Haglund, Bodi, Blue Jays-ND,

2:04.08; 5. Kaiser, Cruz, Blue Jays-ND, 2:14.41; 6. Klabo, Tyler, Blue

Jays-ND, 2:18.86; –. Vecchio, Alex, Magicians, X2:08.10; –. Oswald, Derek,

Magicians, X2:11.39; –. Donohoe, Jamison, Magicians, X2:15.02; –. Chabot,

Brandon, Magicians, X2:26.41; –. Brey, Caden, Magicians, X2:26.58; –.

Gutknecht, Kayden, Magicians, X2:30.67; –. Jarvis, Callahan, Magicians,

X2:48.42; –. Greenlee, Will, Magicians, X2:58.93.

Boys 200 Yard IM:

1. Reinke, Jaxon, Magicians, 2:03.61; 2. Boen, Matt, Magicians, 2:14.51; 3.

Larson, Carter, Magicians, 2:25.25; 4. Olson, Nicholas, Blue Jays-ND, 2:40.02;

–. Dodds, Kaden, Magicians, X2:28.27; –. Burns, Tyler, Magicians, X2:31.92;

–. Ricks, Alex, Magicians, X2:39.88; –. Moldenhauer, Justin, Magicians,

X2:43.79; –. Baldwin, Brayden, Magicians, X2:47.57; –. Rodriguez, Ramiro,

Magicians, X2:56.62; –. Thompson, Chance, Magicians, X3:03.80; –. Geinart,

Finnley, Blue Jays-ND, XDQ.

Boys 50 Yard Freestyle:

1. King, Alex, Magicians, 22.83; 2. Solensky, Teddy H, Blue Jays-ND, 23.26; 3.

Hubbard, Ryan, Magicians, 23.40; 4. Renda, Gianmarco, Magicians, 24.38; 5.

Klabo, Tyler, Blue Jays-ND, 27.95; 6. Klocke, Gavin, Blue Jays-ND, 34.72; –.

Dodds, Jaxon, Magicians, X26.27; –. Harris, Benjamin, Magicians, X26.46; –.

Williamson, Otto, Magicians, X26.84; –. Barthnek, Isaiah, Magicians, X27.34;

–. Armes, Parker, Magicians, X31.36; –. Summers, Logan, Magicians, X35.20;

–. Korstjens, Jameson, Blue Jays-ND, X38.90; –. Shaw, Landon, Magicians,

X40.07; –. Davis, Jackson, Blue Jays-ND, X41.40; –. Thompson, Jaxson,

Magicians, XDQ.

Boys 1 mtr Diving:

1. Ross, Ty, Magicians, 264.90; 2. Solper, Tayson, Magicians, 172.75; 3. Huss,

Trevor, Magicians, 169.40; 4. Fabian, Caleb, Blue Jays-ND, 128.75; –.

Williams, Holden, Magicians, X117.85.

Boys 100 Yard Butterfly:

1. Reinke, Jaxon, Magicians, 54.12; 2. Renda, Gianmarco, Magicians, 1:02.05;

3. Hanson, Zach, Blue Jays-ND, 1:06.97; 4. Oswald, Derek, Magicians, 1:13.28;

5. Velek, Jaydyn, Blue Jays-ND, 1:33.87; –. Greenlee, Will, Magicians,

X1:40.64; –. Lynch, Noah, Blue Jays-ND, DQ.

Boys 100 Yard Freestyle:

1. Hill, Logan, Magicians, 50.79; 2. Boen, Matt, Magicians, 52.48; 3. Fabian,

Kaden, Blue Jays-ND, 53.21; 4. Moser, Finn, Blue Jays-ND, 58.23; 5. Hanson,

Zach, Blue Jays-ND, 58.40; 6. Donohoe, Jamison, Magicians, 59.21; –. Gibson,

Mason, Blue Jays-ND, X59.66; –. Moldenhauer, Justin, Magicians, X1:00.49; –.

Sherlock, Bryan, Magicians, X1:00.89; –. Shaw, Conner, Magicians, X1:01.24;

–. Harris, Benjamin, Magicians, X1:01.51; –. Barthnek, Isaiah, Magicians,

X1:02.71; –. Igl, Ethan, Blue Jays-ND, X1:03.32; –. Gutknecht, Kayden,

Magicians, X1:06.71; –. Rodriguez, Ramiro, Magicians, X1:08.02; –. Motter,

Brayden, Blue Jays-ND, X1:08.87; –. Baldwin, Malychi, Magicians, X1:09.70;

–. Thompson, Chance, Magicians, X1:10.47; –. Mason, Keegan, Magicians,

X1:13.42; –. Withers, Carter, Magicians, X1:13.54; –. Klocke, Gavin, Blue

Jays-ND, X1:19.09; –. Korstjens, Jameson, Blue Jays-ND, X1:29.98; –. Davis,

Jackson, Blue Jays-ND, X1:37.22; –. Thompson, Jaxson, Magicians, X1:49.82;

–. Monson, Luke, Blue Jays-ND, XDQ.

Boys 500 Yard Freestyle:

1. Hubbard, Ryan, Magicians, 5:16.73; 2. Solensky, Teddy H, Blue Jays-ND,

5:23.49; 3. VonBokern, Levi, Magicians, 5:47.97; 4. Moser, Finn, Blue Jays-ND,

6:02.71; 5. Vecchio, Alex, Magicians, 6:04.55; 6. Olson, Nicholas, Blue

Jays-ND, 6:10.95; –. Dodds, Jaxon, Magicians, X5:59.10; –. Geinart, Finnley,

Blue Jays-ND, X7:02.08; –. Shaw, Landon, Magicians, X8:53.66.

Boys 200 Yard Freestyle Relay:

1. Minot High School ‘A’ (Hill, Logan 10, Renda, Gianmarco 11, Roongin,

Paradorn 12, Reinke, Jaxon 12), 1:32.69; 2. Minot High School ‘B’ (Vecchio,

Alex 11, Donohoe, Jamison 12, Boen, Matt 11, VonBokern, Levi 12), 1:42.02; –.

Minot High School ‘D’ (Thompson, Chance 12, Withers, Carter 11, Rodriguez,

Ramiro 10, Shaw, Conner 10), X1:56.23; –. Minot High School ‘E’ (Jarvis,

Callahan 9, Armes, Parker 9, Greenlee, Will 11, Gutknecht, Kayden 10),

X2:06.31; –. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND ‘A’ (Moser, Finn 7, Hanson, Zach 9,

Fabian, Kaden 8, Gibson, Mason 9), DQ; –. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND ‘B’ (Lynch,

Noah 10, Igl, Ethan 12, Klabo, Tyler 8, Kaiser, Cruz 10), DQ; –. Minot High

School ‘C’ (Harris, Benjamin 10, Sherlock, Bryan 11, Moldenhauer, Justin 12,

Oswald, Derek 10), DQ.

Boys 100 Yard Backstroke:

1. King, Alex, Magicians, 58.32; 2. Larson, Carter, Magicians, 1:00.78; 3.

Fabian, Caleb, Blue Jays-ND, 1:01.58; 4. Haglund, Bodi, Blue Jays-ND, 1:02.79;

5. Fabian, Kaden, Blue Jays-ND, 1:04.14; 6. Dodds, Kaden, Magicians, 1:06.75;

–. Burns, Tyler, Magicians, X1:09.35; –. Ricks, Alex, Magicians, X1:12.38;

–. Kaiser, Cruz, Blue Jays-ND, X1:12.96; –. Brey, Caden, Magicians,

X1:18.37; –. Baldwin, Brayden, Magicians, X1:19.08; –. Chabot, Brandon,

Magicians, X1:22.20; –. Williamson, Otto, Magicians, X1:22.21; –. Motter,

Brayden, Blue Jays-ND, X1:23.85; –. Baldwin, Malychi, Magicians, X1:24.51;

–. Mason, Keegan, Magicians, X1:26.19; –. Lynch, Noah, Blue Jays-ND,

X1:28.69; –. Velek, Jaydyn, Blue Jays-ND, X1:35.18; –. Summers, Logan,

Magicians, XDQ.

Boys 100 Yard Breaststroke:

1. Roongin, Paradorn, Magicians, 1:01.18; 2. Gibson, Mason, Blue Jays-ND,

1:14.27; 3. Shaw, Conner, Magicians, 1:16.71; 4. Igl, Ethan, Blue Jays-ND,

1:17.50; 5. Sherlock, Bryan, Magicians, 1:24.24; –. Withers, Carter,

Magicians, X1:29.04; –. Jarvis, Callahan, Magicians, X1:35.37; –. Armes,

Parker, Magicians, XDQ.

Boys 400 Yard Freestyle Relay:

1. Minot High School ‘A’ (Roongin, Paradorn 12, Hubbard, Ryan 12, Hill, Logan

10, King, Alex 12), 3:24.73; 2. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND ‘A’ (Solensky, Teddy H

12, Fabian, Caleb 10, Haglund, Bodi 10, Fabian, Kaden 8), 3:41.56; 3. Minot

High School ‘B’ (VonBokern, Levi 12, Dodds, Kaden 12, Larson, Carter 10, Boen,

Matt 11), 3:44.37; 4. Minot High School ‘C’ (Oswald, Derek 10, Dodds, Jaxon 9,

Donohoe, Jamison 12, Vecchio, Alex 11), x4:02.51; 5. Jamestown Blue Jays-ND

‘B’ (Hanson, Zach 9, Gibson, Mason 9, Moser, Finn 7, Olson, Nicholas 9),

4:03.15; –. Minot High School ‘D’ (Moldenhauer, Justin 12, Williamson, Otto

10, Chabot, Brandon 12, Ricks, Alex 11), X4:10.84; –. Minot High School ‘E’

(Burns, Tyler 10, Gutknecht, Kayden 10, Brey, Caden 9, Thompson, Chance 12),

X4:34.63; –. Minot High School ‘F’ (Baldwin, Brayden 10, Mason, Keegan 9,

Baldwin, Malychi 9, Rodriguez, Ramiro 10), X4:39.01; –. Minot High School ‘G’

(Greenlee, Will 11, Jarvis, Callahan 9, Summers, Logan 10, Shaw, Landon 12),

X5:42.88.