2019 North Dakota Boys High School State
- March 1st-2nd, 2019
- Bismarck Aquatic Center, ND
- Short Course Yards, Prelims-Finals
- Full Results
Packed with a deep roster, defending state champions Minot High School secured their second straight team victory at the 2019 NDHSAA Boys State Championships – even without winning a single event. A total of four state records were broken throughout the duration of the meet.
Top 5 Teams:
- Minot – 438
- Century – 327
- Fargo North – 267
- West Fargo – 216
- Fargo South – 171
Although Minot took the team title by a sizable margin over second place Century, the Century Patriots won seven out of the eleven events contested.
The first of the Patriots’ wins came from the 200 medley relay – Charles Koebele, Jayden Porter, Riley Kaul and Will Dohrmann combined to take the event in a time of 1:36.52, breaking the six year old state record of 1:36.64.
Following up his teammate’s record-breaking performance, Century junior Chris Birnbaum set a state record of his own in the 200 free, claiming the top spot with a time of 1:42.38. His time lowers Dylan Sether’s 2013 record of 1:42.76 by a couple of tenths.
Birnbaum went on to become a two-time event winner with a 4:48.76 to win the 500 free by over ten seconds.
Senior Jayden Porter helped complete a sweep of the first three events for the Patriots, locking up the 200 IM with a winning time of 1:56.70. Porter also became a double event winner and earned a state record of his own – he won the 100 breast, clocking a 55.68, the first sub-56 in ND state history.
Porter’s time is an impressive drop from his winning time of 59.11 from last year’s state championships, though he swam a 58.78 in the preliminary heats.
The only other two-time event winner was Wahpeton’s Eric Anderson. The sophomore won both the 50 freestyle (21.22) and the 100 freestyle (46.29).
Mandan’s Johnny Mindt capped off his senior year as a state champion and state record holder in the boys’ 1m diving event. He tallied a final score of 526.55, surpassing Brady Coughlin’s 2015 mark of 509.80.
Century’s 400 free relay squad, consisting of Birnbaum, Koebele, Porter and Ryan Johnson, posted a final time of 3:14.11. Though Minot’s relay finished third in the race with a 3:19.47, the team trophy had already been secured.
Other Event Winners:
- Williston’s Rhys Enget reigned supreme in the 100 fly; the senior recorded a final time of 53.09, narrowly overtaking junior Peyton Fisher of Fargo North’s 53.79.
- Speaking of Fisher and Fargo North, he alongside teammates Eric Meier, Caden Boutwell, and Payton Gabel emerged victorious in the 200 free relay with a time of 1:28.73.
- Century junior Charles Koebele – who was apart of two winning relays – picked up a win of his own in the 100 back, touching the wall in a time of 53.06
