Starting on June 1, the Magic City girls basketball program will begin its summer camp.

The first-mini camp session will take place at Jim Hill Middle School from June 1-3 and will consist of players in first, second and third grades. A second mini-camp for this age group will be held July 5-7.

Meanwhile, a competition camp will be held at the Magic City campus from June 7-10 for players in grades four through six. A separate skills camp and league for this age group will be held on Mondays from June 14 to July 12.

For players in seventh and eighth grade, skill camp and league activities will take place on Mondays and Wednesdays from June 7 to July 14. In grades 9-12, there will also be skill camp activities twice per week during June and July, as well as a team camp June 8 to July 15 with varsity and junior varsity levels playing on different days.

Jason Schwarz, who also serves as the Minot High varsity girls basketball coach, has been in charge of running the camp for three years. In coaching the younger players who participate, he says the top priority is simply to make the camp fun.

“If they are not having fun at basketball camp, they are less likely to want to stay involved in the future,” Schwarz tells The Minot Daily News. “Secondly, we want to make sure the kids are fundamentally sound and learning the basic steps needed to perfect their skills.”

In order to make the camp fun for the younger players, Schwarz enlists the help of his current varsity players to instruct the drills as children will have the unique opportunity to interact with current Magi players on the court.

“It’s really a thrill for the kids when they get a chance to learn from our varsity players like Mariah (Evenson) or Maggie (Fricke),” the Minot coach adds.

For the older players within the Minot program, Schwarz estimates his club will participate in roughly 30 games this summer as part of a travel team camp. Both varsity and junior varsity players plan to hit the road and travel to out-of-state destinations such as South Dakota, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho to name a few. By getting to see many different regions of the United States, the Magi players will be able to hone their skills against a whole new crop of talent.

“Competing against these teams that we have never seen before will be exciting for sure,” Schwarz states. “And we also plan to do other non-basketball related team activities like whitewater rafting and rock climbing, so it’s going to be a fun summer for everyone.”