Magicians are looking to finish a magical season
MINOT, N.D. (BVM) — When it comes to North Dakota High School boys swimming and diving the Minot Magicians lead the pack and it’s not even close.
Since 2000, the Magicians have won 19 Western Dakota Association (WDA) championships — including this season — as well as 14 state championships.
The Magicians are coming off a 2020 season that saw them win their fourth straight WDA title and third straight state title in which they posted their best-ever point totals. The team was also composed of eight first team All-State honorees and one second team All-State honoree.
With many from last year’s team returning, Minot has continued its dominance. The team has gone undefeated this season leading up to the state meet.
“It’s really been kind of the perfect team to have during this season,” Minot coach Jacob Solper said.
It is a well-rounded team that not only features great swimmers but four varsity-level divers who Solper expects to finish in the top 12 at the state meet.
“We definitely wouldn’t be as successful as we are without our divers and diving is definitely one of the strong points in our lineup this season,” Solper said.
Along with the divers, the teams consist of 10 seniors who have kept the team on track and in particular the team’s four senior captains.
Josh Boen, Dominic Yoeder, Tyler Hills and Will Thomas have been pivotal to what Minot has been able to do up to this point in the season.
“We’ve got the work ethic, we’ve got the ability and really we’ve got phenomenal leadership out of those four captains this year,” Solper said. “I really attribute a lot of this season’s success to them.”
Yoeder is ranked No. 1 in both his events, the 200 IM and 100 backstroke. As for Hill and Thomas their growth over the last year has been impressive. From their junior to senior year, the two captains have completely committed to finishing their high school careers strongly and it has rubbed off on the rest of the team.
“Those two really led by example,” Solper said.
It created an extremely competitive atmosphere both at practice and at meets that has led the Magicians to try and one up each other as they look to help the team anyway they can.
“We’re so lucky to have the type of team that we do because day in and day out of practice they’ve got somebody next to them pushing them,” Solper said.
That competitiveness in practice has been important this season as the Magicians have not been able to compete against any teams in the Eastern Dakota Association (EDA) leading up to the state meet.
“Some of those guys (out East) in a general year would push our guys to the next level,” Solper said.
Instead, this season they have had to watch film and pay attention to the state qualifiers list to know what their competitions look like so the ability for the team to push each other has been key.
“They are truly competitors, they give it everything they’ve got everyday in practice,” Solper said. “They compete with each other and then they bring that same competitive drive into every meet that we attend.”
Besides the competitive nature of practice, the Magicians have gotten creative in making sure the experience is more than just competing hard at practice. Even with the limitations around team events, the athletes on the Minot team have made it their mission to make sure they have fun.
Solper says the boys’ quirkiness and humor has really shown this season and it’s helped to keep the atmosphere light.
“I’ve had a lot of laughs this season,” Solper said.
But as the season has shown, when it’s time to compete, the Magicians can flip that switch and the team dominates.
Their ability to have fun, push each other to be better and stay focused on the task at hand with all the outside distractions is a credit to the culture that has been in the Minot program for years.
“The Minot High boys swimming and diving program since before I can remember has had a phenomenal culture,” Solper said. “A culture that is able to handle any obstacles in a positive and solution oriented manner.”
Their solution to handling this year was to approach it with gratitude.
“Gratitude that we’ve been able to at this point now make it as far as we have,” Solper said. “We didn’t know at the beginning of the season if it was going to happen or not. … I think with that gratitude it motivates the guys to take advantage of the opportunities that we’ve had this season so I think it’s really kept everybody’s focus and determination kind of on track.”
The Magicians more than anything have been thankful to compete this year. They are a family in and out of the pool and to be able to have a season at all was the most important thing to everyone. But now as they enter the final weekend of the season, they are once again ready to add to the already impressive Minot legacy.
“I think the guys are looking good and feeling good in the water so we’re looking for some outstanding performances at state,” Solper said.
