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Alex’s Tale of the Tape #454, Date: Apr. 22, 2017

By the time senior Jocelyn Lucy reached first base, her teammates had already poured out of the dugout and were waiting for her arrival back at home plate. She couldn’t help but smile as she rounded second.

The Minot High School softball team had waited all game to take the lead against Bismarck Legacy. After battling back time and time again, it was one swing of the bat that unleashed all the pent-up tension.

A three-run walk-off home run, and Lucy found herself in the middle of a group of Majettes jumping up and down.

“That’s something she will dream about,” MHS coach Gerard Cederstrom said.

However, the moment of bliss after the 9-6 win was quickly wiped away as Legacy dominated the follow-up contest, 12-1, to split the doubleheader against Minot at the South Hill Softball Complex.

Not the ending the Majettes had hoped for, but it certainly didn’t take away from their resolve in the opening contest.

Minot trailed 2-0 and then 6-2 before scoring seven straight runs to take Game 1.

Legacy wasted no time in getting rid of the sour taste of the opening game defeat. Every Sabers player in the batting order recorded a hit for 20 hits total in a Game 2 landslide.

Alex’s Tale of the Tape #38, Date: Aug. 25, 2016

The Minot High School boys soccer team didn’t look like a team that had lost their first three games to start the season, as they peppered Mandan with 35 total shots in a 4-0 home-opener victory at the Optimist Soccer Complex.

The Magi scored two goals in the first 12 minutes courtesy of Isaac Kauffman and Evan Bolinske.

JJ Johannsen added a flashy goal — to go with his assist to Bolinske — on a calculated strike from 25-yards out with 11 minutes gone by in the second half.

“I took the first kid on and put it through his legs and beat him,” Johannsen said. “And after that, I kind of just saw the goal, and the goalie was too close to the inside post. So, I just tried to hit it to the outside post. Luckily it was a good shot.”

With 13 minutes left, junior Avery Weishaar finally found the back of the net after having a handful of chances throughout the game. A pinpoint through ball by sophomore Cody Burke on a counter-attack set Weishaar free. He had no problems capitalizing on this opportunity as he slotted in the Magi’s fourth goal into the bottom corner.

The Magi’s defense was never threatened in the shutout, as they allowed two shots — both were off-target.

Alex’s Tale of the Tape #117, Date: Apr. 22, 2017

The Kenmare-Bowbells-Burke Central Honkers football team kicked off the first round of the 9-man North Dakota state playoffs with a bang.

Senior quarterback Hunter Rodin broke three national passing records as the Region 6 No. 2-seeded Honkers eliminated Region 4 No. 4-seeded Drake/Anamoose with a 70-12 victory in Kenmare.

Rodin tossed five passing touchdowns and rushed for two more. With the impressive performance, Rodin broke national 9-man records in passing touchdowns in a single season (39) and passing yards.

“It was a tremendous opportunity, and I have to thank the linemen, wide receivers, the whole team,” Rodin said. “This doesn’t mean much. I want to keep moving on and get to the championship. That’s where we want to go. We want to go to Fargo.”

Kenmare unloaded with 32 points (four touchdowns and four two-point conversions) to close out the first half.

By crossing over the 284-yard passing plateau in the second half, Rodin surpassed Tate Bruckner’s (Menno, S.D.) 2008 record season mark of 2,707 passing yards.

Reciever Kolton Jesz caught nine passes for 218 yards and three touchdowns, and Hunter Rodin’s brother Jacob Rodin hauled in four catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns.