Coming off of two losses in Red River Valley at the Sheyenne Invite on Friday, the Minot High boys tennis team got back to its winning ways on Thursday with a 5-2 road victory against Bismarck Legacy at the Sanford Sports Complex.

With both teams sporting a 2-0 conference record going into the match, Minot’s win now gives them possession of first place in the WDA West Region standings.

In singles play, the Magicians won all matches played in the No. 3 through 6 positions. At No. 3, Grayson Schaeffer defeated Gage Martell 7-5, 6-4. In the No. 4 slot, Hunter Rice recorded a 6-3, 6-4 win over Legacy’s Brayden Ruff. Manning the No. 5 position, Colby Opp got the better of Drew Beasley by a tally of 6-3, 6-2. Then at No. 6, Minot’s Brayden McLean was also a straight set winner over Joe Kalb 6-1, 6-2.

The Magi’s only singles defeats happened at No. 1 and No. 2 as Zach Diehl lost a tough three set match against Legacy’s top player Jay Moylan 6-3, 2-6, 0-6. Meanwhile, Aidan Diehl lost to Legacy’s No. 2 player in Anthony Janes 1-6, 0-6.

Then in doubles play, two of the three matches were called off due to darkness. The only match that was completed was Zach and Aidan Diehl’s 6-1, 6-1 triumph over Legacy’s Moylan and Ruff at the No. 1 position. Afterward, MHS tennis head coach Scott DeLorme stated he was quite pleased with Minot’s focus right from the start of the meet.

“We won five opening sets very quickly, and even though Zach Diehl ended up losing in three sets, he competed with one of the better players in the state,” DeLorme told The Minot Daily News. “Our 3-6 singles players were excellent today helping us jump out to a 4-2 lead. Then in doubles, Zach and Aidan Diehl were the first match on and they quickly secured our fifth point and the team victory. It was a fantastic team effort today, and the way we competed was what we’ve been stressing all year.”

Next up on the schedule, Minot plans to host multiple meets against Grand Forks Central and Red River on Friday at Hammond Park. The first meet of the day is slated for a noon start time.