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Back-to-back wins lift Ely

Timberwolves look to advance in section ranking after topping MI-B

Keith Vandervort
Posted 5/12/21

ELY- Back-to-back wins in the past week advanced the Timberwolves softball team’s ranking to fifth-place in the Section 7A North subsection, success that could impact seedings in the upcoming …

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Back-to-back wins lift Ely

Timberwolves look to advance in section ranking after topping MI-B

Posted

ELY- Back-to-back wins in the past week advanced the Timberwolves softball team’s ranking to fifth-place in the Section 7A North subsection, success that could impact seedings in the upcoming playoffs.
And with Monday’s 7-6 win over Mt. Iron-Buhl, which improved the team’s record to 5-5, Ely has a good chance to move up a spot.
Ely is currently ranked fifth out of nine teams, right behind fourth-ranked Littlefork-Big Falls and third-ranked Mt. Iron-Buhl. “The victory Monday night was not only a confidence booster but a seeding win for us as well,” said Coach Cory Lassi. “I’ll take a 5-5 record right now with how young we are,” Lassi said. “I told the team that a couple of focused wins could mean a lot in our section ranking.”
Ely trailed by two runs heading into the seventh against the Rangers. But in a nail-biting rally, they scored three runs, including a play at the plate, for the win. “It went back and forth all game,” Lassi said. “They went up 2-0. We cut it to 2-1, then we went up 4-2. They came back and made it 6-4 in the top of the sixth.”
In the seventh inning, Ely’s top of the order was set to bat. “Charly Flom reached on an error. Rachel Coughlin rapped a single. Sydni Richards added a single to load the bases with nobody out. Kate Coughlin hit a grounder back to the pitcher but the only play was to first base. The run scored cut the lead to 6-5,” Lassi said.
With the winning run on second base and one out, Katrina Seliskar hit a grounder to second. “Our runner on third base scored and I sent Sydni home. The ball thrown from first actually beat her to the plate but she put a really nice slide on to get underneath the tag.”
Richards led the charge at the plate, belting out three hits in four at bats with an RBI. The Timberwolves team amassed 10 hits for the night, with Madeline Kallberg and Charly Flom adding two hits each
Katrina Seliskar added two RBIs, helping her cause. From the mound, she gave up seven hits and struck out four.
“It is nice to be put in those types of positions that give the girls a chance to battle for the win. It was a fun atmosphere,” he said.
The Wolves rapped out 14 hits last Friday as they downed North Woods 10-5 (see separate story). It was a nice recovery after suffering a 15-0 shutout at the hands of Eveleth-Gilbert last Thursday. Sydni Richards and Rachel Coughlin were the only Ely batters to get hits. As a team, the Timberwolves struck out 11 times.
“Our team batting average is .320,” Lassi said. “I would say that is our strongest team skill right now. But with each game I feel more confident with our fielding as well.”
After hosting Littlefork-Big Falls on Wednesday, the Wolves were set to hit the road with visits to Floodwood on Friday, Nashwauk-Keewatin on Monday and Mt. Iron-Buhl next Wednesday. The Timberwolves are scheduled to host Northeast Range on Thursday, May 20.