SWIMMING AND DIVING

Former UND coach Mike Stromberg brings swimming camp to Bemidji pool

Jared Rubado — Fri, 20 Jun 2025 15:40:31 GMT

BEMIDJI – For the better part of 50 years, former North Dakota swimming head coach Mike Stromberg has spent his summers inside local swimming pools in the upper Midwest.

The Stromberg name makes it easy for word of mouth to advertise his offseason programs.

The Havre, Montana, native took the UND collegiate swimming programs to new heights, turning postseason inexperience into a Division-II juggernaut. Stromberg won a combined 34 North Central Conference titles. He led the formerly-named Sioux to a pair of women’s national runner-up finishes and was among the nation's top six teams in each of his final 17 seasons. He also notched a men’s third-place finish nationally in 2011 and had 13 top-10 campaigns.

Stromberg boosted North Dakota’s numbers from seven to 57 before stepping down in 2001. Now, in his retirement years, he’s working his magic in Bemidji.

From June 8-11, Stromberg hosted the latest iteration of his camp for 55 swimmers. While most were from Bemidji and other prominent swimming areas in northern Minnesota, other campers traveled from neighboring states, as well as Colorado Springs.

Stromberg’s camps come with an emphasis on inclusion.

“Earlier on, the camps were a lot of swimming and not much teaching,” he said. “I’ve had to learn how to teach and how to get kids engaged. When I started, I would tell the kids to do stuff, and only some of them got better. Now, I want to make sure everybody here gets better.”

Stromberg hosted his first camp in 1978 in Minot, North Dakota. However, it wasn’t until after his time at UND concluded that his camps took off.

Over the last 20-plus years, Stromberg has brought in accomplished swimming figures to assist him at his camps. His connections range from Olympic-level swimmers and former national champions to revered coaches.

For kids like BHS rising senior Daniel Scherling, who is coming off of his first Class AA state berth, sharing the pool with accomplished peers and coaches sets the bar high.

“These coaches have been doing this for a long time,” Scherling said. “Just to have multiple eyes watching you who have a lot of experience in swimming, to have them watch you and know what you’re doing wrong – and know how to fix it – it’s just a great feeling.

“You want to listen to everything they say because they have so much experience. If they tell you to try something, you do it because it’s going to make you a better swimmer.”

Keeping it local

Stromberg’s relationships with the BHS swimmers extend beyond his half-week camp.

In 2021, Stromberg sold his club swimming team in Colorado and retired in Bemidji, where his wife was raised. In 2022, he began volunteer coaching the Lumberjacks.

His partnership with BHS has come with advanced technology. During practice, each swimmer wears a waterproof headset. Stromberg is in their ears while they’re in the pool.

The headsets are also used in his camps.

“We don’t tell them what to do; we just give them ideas,” Stromberg said. “The three key words are explore, experience and evaluate. What worked for you and what didn’t work for you?

“Everybody’s different, and everyone has a different body to swim with. If I try to teach the whole pool to do the same thing in the same way, only 40-50% of the kids can do it, while the other 60% flounder.”

Scherling has taken a head-first approach to Stromberg’s three-word motto.

“Everyone has their own swimming style,” Scherling said. “When you’re in season, you’re around the same people every day. You kind of get used to it. When you come here and see a bunch of new swimmers, a lot of them are better and faster than me, so I get to watch how they do starts, stroke work and everything. I get to watch these coaches give them tips, and I can take them for myself.”

More importantly for the local attendees, Stromberg’s camp offers them something they haven’t had: availability.

Stromberg’s summer sessions are the first of their kind in Bemidji. While the Bemidji Area Super Swimmers have an affluent club organization, high school swimmers have had to travel beyond northern Minnesota for summer training.

“It’s a lot cheaper for us and our families to do camps in Bemidji than anywhere else,” Scherling said. “There’s a lot of Bemidji people here, too, and that’s good for all of us. Camps like this give us experience that we otherwise wouldn’t get because it’s so much more convenient.”

Both the BHS boys and girls programs have seen a participation spike in recent years. Local camps not only give area athletes more exposure to outside coaching; they also provide structure to a budding sport.

“Getting camps like this in Bemidji is huge,” Scherling said. “We need to increase the popularity of swimming here. I think we can show people how cool swimming is. It’s not the most popular sport. It’s not football, hockey, basketball – sports like that. It’s a smaller sport, and that’s OK, but we can always use more numbers on the swim team. Camps like this help with that.”

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Daman, Wille and Olson earn 1st-place finishes as Jacks lose to Grand Rapids

Pioneer Staff Report — Wed, 16 Oct 2024 01:17:33 GMT

GRAND RAPIDS – The Bemidji High �� swimming and diving team earned three first-place finishes at its meet in Grand Rapids Tuesday evening, where the Lumberjacks lost 102-83.

The Jacks’ initial first-place finish of the night came courtesy of Abby Daman, who earned a 2:24.68 time in the 200-yard individual medley.

BHS also earned the top three spots in the diving event, with Kennedy Olson’s 205.45 score leading the pack. Ridley Hadrava and Aubrey Dewitt rounded out the top three, notching 176.60 and 162.90, respectively.

Elle Wille secured another first-place finish for the Lumberjacks in the 500-yard freestyle, notching a time of 5:48.42.

BHS had a handful of runner-up finishes as well. Anna Friedt, Kiera Strodtman, Naomi Olson and Kylie Graham took second in the 200 medley relay (2:11.33). WIlle also took second in the 200 free (2:09.86), followed by Emily Haack in third (2:18.78). Haack also finished behind Wille in the 500 free (6:14.14).

Finley Zothman took second in the 50-yard freestyle at 26.26. She also was the runner-up in the 100 free (56.66).

Daman, Haack, Zothman and Wille finished in second in the 200-yard free relay (1:47.82). Kiera Strodtman swapped places with Haack in the 400 free relay for a second-place time of 4:02.65.

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Bemidji edged out by Moorhead in competitive meet

Pioneer Staff Report — Fri, 04 Oct 2024 04:06:14 GMT

MOORHEAD – The Bemidji High �� girls swimming and diving team lost to Moorhead 94-82 in a competitive meet on Thursday evening.

Bemidji’s initial first-place finish of the night came in the 200-yard freestyle relay, where Abby Daman, Emily Haack, Finley Zothman and Elle Wille teamed up for a time of 1:45.68.

Daman also took home first in the 100-yard breaststroke, notching a time of 1:13.97.

The Lumberjacks picked up another first-place finish in the 400-yard freestyle relay. Wille, Zothman, Daman and Kiera Strodtman combined for a 3:58.15 final time.

Second-place finishes came sprinkled across the events for Bemidji. Wille was the runner-up in the 200 freestyle (2:07.72), and Daman also took second in the 200 individual medley (2:25.22). Zothman took second in the 50 freestyle (25.88).

Kennedy Olson took silver in diving (206.70), while Naomi Olson finished second in the 100 butterfly (1:10.05). Zothman was runner-up in the 100 freestyle (56.25), while Wille finished second in the 500 freestyle (5:40.97) and Anna Friedt claimed the final runner-up finish in the 100 backstroke (1:11.04).

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Bemidji finishes 6th at Border Battle meet

Pioneer Staff Report — Sat, 21 Sep 2024 23:35:59 GMT

WEST FARGO, N.D. – The Bemidji High �� girls swimming and diving team finished sixth at the Border Battle meet Saturday afternoon.

Kennedy Olson continued her stellar season by taking first place in the meet's diving event, notching a score of 386.20.

Finley Zothman earned a pair of top-three finishes at the Border Battle, placing third in the 50-yard freestyle (25.89) and second in the 100-yard freestyle (55.98).

Elle Wille finished in the top-10 in two events: the 200-yard freestyle (2:10.73, seventh) and the 500-yard freestyle (5:59.80, seventh).

Zothman, Wille, Josie Carter and Ella Yoder teamed up to capture third in the 200 freestyle relay.

Another Bemidji relay team earned a solid finish at the meet. Zothman, Wille, Emily Haack and Quinn Friedt finished sixth in the 400-yard freestyle with a time of 4:01.02.

Team Results

1-Legacy 392; 2-Horace 362.5; 3-West Fargo Sheyenne 289; 4-Fargo North 264; 5-West Fargo 204; 6-Bemidji 153; 7-Andover 142; 8-Detroit Lakes 134; 9-Willmar 103.5; 10-Albany 96.

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Bemidji earns 1st in every event at home meet against Warroad

Pioneer Staff Report — Wed, 18 Sep 2024 02:52:45 GMT

BEMIDJI – The Bemidji High �� swimming and diving team finished atop every event in its meet against Warroad Tuesday evening, winning 142-41.

Finley Zothman earned a time of 2:11.24 in the 200-yard freestyle to capture the first of Bemidji’s first-place finishes in the solo events. Zothman, alongside Anna Friedt, Abby Daman and Naomi Olson, kicked the events off by finishing first in the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 2:06.41.

Olson also picked up a pair of first-place finishes in individual events, clocking 2:47.55 in the 200 IM and 1:13.79 in the 100 butterfly.

Ellie Willie was the Lumberjacks’ top swimmer in the 50-yard freestyle (27.36). She also notched gold in the 100-yard freestyle (1:01.22).

As the only team fielding divers, Bemidji earned all three of the event's placements, led by Kennedy Olson’s 228.25 points.

Daman led the way in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:47.10.

Abby Olson’s 1:16.57 finish in the 100 backstroke was good for first in the event and Quinn Friedt’s 1:26.80 in the 100 breaststroke grabbed the Jacks’ final first-place finish in individual events on the night.

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Special Olympics Bemidji competes in state swim meet in Lakeville

Pioneer Staff Report — Mon, 24 Jun 2024 17:41:11 GMT

LAKEVILLE – Special Olympics Bemidji swimmers had a memorable weekend in the Twin Cities area.

Nine athletes and four Unified partners competed at the state swimming meet June 15-16 at Century Middle �� in Lakeville. A total of 14 medals came home to Bemidji after the weekend.

Swimmers not only competed in the pool, but they also went to the Como Zoo in St. Paul and a Minnesota Twins game.

Alicia Carter took first place in the 50-meter freestyle (1:23.34), as did Kyle Heffner (55.95). Rebecca Pukal (1:02.3) and Anthony Smith (26.87) won 25-meter backstroke races. Smith also won a 25-meter free race in 19.87 seconds.

Parker Bruns, Carly Gunvalson, Shawn Kiefer, Kristen Sandmeyer, Nash Tietz, Melanie Toftum and Marley Ueland all placed in the top three in their respective individual and Unified relay events.

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SWIMMING AND DIVING: Lumberjacks complete season at Section 8AA meet

Pioneer Staff Report — Sun, 26 Feb 2023 03:13:42 GMT

BRAINERD -- The Bemidji High �� boys swimming and diving team ended its season on Saturday at the Section 8AA meet in Brainerd.

No Lumberjack athletes qualified for the state meet, which will be held March 2-4 at the University of Minnesota's Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis. The top two finishers in each event at the sectional advanced to state.

The Lumberjacks finished eighth as a team with 108 points. Brainerd won the section team title with 376 points.

The Jacks' 200-yard freestyle relay team of Moses Son, Adam Allery, Tanner Johnson and Walker Erickson finished fifth with a time of 1:33.71. That same foursome took seventh in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 3:29.71.

Son took sixth place in the 100-yard butterfly in 54.38 seconds.

Erickson finished eighth in the 100 freestyle in 51.24.

Bemidji's Matthew Winkle, Daniel Scherling, Brayden Anderson and Zach Roberts finished eighth in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:55.67.

Team Results

1-Brainerd 376; 2-Buffalo/Maple Lake 344; 3-Sartell-St. Stephen 292; 4-Moorhead 277; 5-Elk River 244; 6-St. Michael-Albertville 240; 7-St. Cloud Tech/Cathedral/Rocori/Becker 221, 8-Bemidji 108.

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BOYS SWIMMING AND DIVING: Bemidji finishes 8th of 15 teams at Border Battle

Pioneer Staff Report — Sun, 09 Jan 2022 02:38:21 GMT

WEST FARGO, N.D. – The Bemidji High �� boys swimming and diving team finished eighth of 15 teams at the Border Battle in West Fargo, N.D., on Saturday, with Brooks Matetich and Moses Son ranking as the top BHS individual finishers overall.

Matetich was in on all three of the Lumberjacks’ best finishes of the day. He placed second in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 51.13, and he was fourth in the 50 free at 23.28.

Matetich also raced the first leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay. He, Walker Erickson, Son and Aidan Wolf combined to place fifth in 3:32.78.

Wolf and Son also had a pair of sixth-place finishes, as Wolf clocked a time of 53.91 in the 100 free and Son a time of 58.12 in the 100 butterfly.

Rounding out Bemidji’s other top-10 times, Erickson was seventh in the 50 free (23.62), Son was seventh in the 200 free (1:58.98) and Wolf was ninth in the 200 free (2:00.43).

All those placements contributed to the Lumberjacks’ 139 team points, which put them squarely in the middle of the field. Alexandria won the meet with 384 points, just ahead of second-place Fargo Davies’ 372.

All the individuals were ranked on a leaderboard, as well, and Matetich tied for 10th with 32 points. Son followed in a tie for 20th with 25 points, while Wolf (22) and Erickson (18) tied for 26th and 31st, respectively. Max Brown also made the list with six points for 63rd.

Bemidji dives back into action at 5 p.m. Friday, Jan. 14, with a home invite at the BHS pool.

Team Results (Top 10)

1-Alexandria 384; 2-Fargo Davies 372; 3-Moorhead 227; 4-Melrose/Sauk Centre 205; 5-Andover 192; 6-West Fargo Sheyenne 171; 7-West Fargo 153; 8-Bemidji 139; 9-Fargo North 127; 10-Grand Forks 100.

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BOYS SWIMMING AND DIVING: Bemidji racks up 11 top-5 marks, 2 wins in Brainerd invite

Pioneer Staff Report — Tue, 28 Dec 2021 22:06:22 GMT

BRAINERD -- The Bemidji High �� boys swimming and diving team tallied 11 top-five times at the Brainerd Invite on Tuesday, including a pair of wins, while swimming to fifth out of six teams at the meet.

Aidan Wolf had a hand in both of the Lumberjacks’ gold-medal performances. Wolf was first in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:26.84, and he paired with Brooks Matetich, Walker Erickson and Moses Son to win the 400 free relay in 3:36.23.

Son also placed second in the 100 butterfly (58.34), and Erickson was second in the 100 free (52.94). Both contributed on the 200 free relay alongside Matetich and Ben Dockendorf, placing second in 1:35.97.

Matetich clocked in at 23.47 in the 50 free, good for third, and he finished the 100 butterfly in 59.84 for fourth. Erickson was right behind him in the 50 free, finishing in 23.87 for fourth.

Wolf (2:00.62) and Son (2:00.73) finished back-to-back in fourth and fifth place in the 200 free, while Dockendorf rounded out the team’s top-five showings by claiming fifth in the 100 free with a time of 54.50.

BHS finished with 271 points as a team. Brainerd won the invite with 645 points, while Buffalo/Maple Lake (392) and Willmar (331) rounded out the top three.

Bemidji is next in action at an invite in West Fargo, N.D., starting at 10:30 a.m. on Jan. 8.

Team Results

1-Brainerd 645; 2-Buffalo/Maple Lake 392; 3-Willmar 331; 4-Melrose/Sauk Centre 304; 5-Bemidji 271; 6-Bloomington Kennedy 228.

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BOYS SWIMMING AND DIVING: Bemidji ousts Detroit Lakes for 1st win

Pioneer Staff Report — Wed, 22 Dec 2021 03:52:13 GMT

DETROIT LAKES -- The Bemidji High �� boys swimming and diving team dominated the top of the podium on Tuesday.

The Lumberjacks earned their first dual victory of the season with 10 wins in 12 events, besting Detroit Lakes 96-73 on the road.

Ben Dockendorf was in on all three relay wins for BHS.

He joined forces with Moses Son, Brooks Matetich and Aidan Wolf in the 200-yard medley relay to finish in 1:54.19. Nick Carlson, Dockendorf, Will Termont and Walker Erickson also won the 200 free relay in 1:51.89, and the 400 free relay quartet of Son, Drew Halden, Dockendorf and Erickson was first in 3:59.05.

Dockendorf also picked up an individual win by sprinting to a 24.11 finish in the 50 free.

Erickson tallied another two individual wins of his own to match Dockendorf’s team-high four wins on the evening. Erickson won the 200 free in 2:00.62 and the 100 butterfly in 1:00.61.

Matetich grabbed a pair of individual wins himself, topping the field in the 100 free (52.24) and the 100 breaststroke (1:15.25).

Son also won the 500 free in 5:39.66, and Wolf won the 200 IM in 2:29.21 to wrap up Bemidji’s wins in the dual.

The Lumberjacks will return after the holiday for the Brainerd Invite at 10 a.m. on Tuesday, Dec. 28.

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