Justin Martinez/MDN Senior wide receiver Kyler Stenberg drags a Dickinson defender as he moves the field in Minot High's game against the Midgets Thursday night at Duane Carlson Stadium.

In the last home game of his Minot High School career, senior backup quarterback Cade Tate got his chance and capitalized.

Minot High football found itself in a close one with 11:50 left in the second quarter of its game against Dickinson on Thursday evening. With the score reading 6-0 in favor of the Magi, head coach Barry Holmen reached into his bag of tricks.

Junior quarterback Jaxon Gunville lined up for the snap at Dickinson’s 47 yard line, took the ball and tossed a screen pass to Tate on the left side. Tate, who’d spent most of the season as a tight end/wide receiver, hauled in the pass and surveyed the field.

The senior noticed a wide open Jordan Johnson streaking down the field and decided to show off his arm, launching a pass over the heads of the unsuspecting Dickinson defenders. The ball soared through the air and hit Johnson right on the numbers as he waltzed in for the easy score.

Little did Dickinson know, the Magi were only getting started.

Minot High (3-5, 2-4 WDA) went on to handle its business on Thursday, defeating Dickinson, 33-0, in a game where the Magi dazzled the home crowd with a series of trick plays.

After a two-yard touchdown run by Gunville, Minot High got creative once more. Gunville took the snap at Dickinson’s 9-yard line with just over a minute left until halftime and handed it over to wide receiver Jacob Schiele on a jet sweep.

The speedy senior sprinted toward the right sideline, stopped and lobbed a pass to a wide open Tate in the end zone for the easy score, giving Minot High a 27-0 lead at halftime.

The Magi kept their foot on the gas in the third quarter as junior running back Payton Philion broke free for a 64-yard touchdown run on Minot High’s first play of the second half. The Magi went into cruise control after that, bringing in a number of backups en route to the 33-0 win.

Philion finished the night with 161 yards and a touchdown on 15 carries while junior defensive back Parker Jacobson led the Magi’s defense with a pair of interceptions.

The dominant win is a step in the right direction for a Minot High team that’s looking to take some momentum into the offseason after missing the playoffs for the first time since 1996.

The Magi will have a chance to end the season on another positive note Wednesday when they travel to Grand Forks to take on Red River.

Justin Martinez covers Minot High School Sports and Class B high school sports. Follow him on Twitter @JTheSportsDude.