MARBLE - With hopes of staging a deep postseason run coming in, Ely had a nightmarish start to the Section 7A tournament.

But, the Wolves responded with calm and poise to first keep their season alive, then make it through to the final four of the championship bracket on Tuesday in Marble.

Second-seeded Ely opened the day with a come-from-behind 19-9 win over seventh-seeded Littlefork-Big Falls.

Then, Ely earned a 10-0 shutout win over third-seeded North Woods, which advanced earlier in the day with a 10-0 first-round win over No. 6 Nashwauk-Keewatin.

Ely starting pitcher Carter Gaulke delivered a lights-out performance against North Woods, throwing a one-hit shutout while striking out 10.

“Carter Gaulke pitched his best game of the season at the most opportune time,” Ely head coach Frank Ivancich said.

The Wolves were relentless at the plate, scoring two runs in the first, a run in the second, two in the third, three in the fourth and finally a final two in the fifth for the 10-run rule victory.

Mark Killoran went 3-for-4 at the plate with an RBI and scored twice and Joey Pierce added a two-run double to lead the Wolves.

Ely had a stressful start to the day, needing a win over Littlefork-Big Falls to reach the double elimination portion of the tournament.

The Wolves’ season was put in jeopardy early on, as the Vikings took advantage of four walks and four errors to jump to a quick 6-0 lead.

Ely answered rapidly in the second inning, though, manufacturing eight runs on the strength of run-scoring hits by Nils DeRemee, Killoran, Tyler Housey and Thomas Montana to take an 8-6 lead.

The Wolves tacked on another three runs apiece in the third and fourth innings and four more in the fifth for the 10-run rule win.

Killoran went 3-for-4 in the opener as well, scoring four runs and knocking in two.

Ryan Quick, Gage Merhar and Montana each had two hits.

Trevor Mattson worked 3-1/3 innings of relief to notch the win.

Both teams were scheduled to be back in action on Thursday, with North Woods in an elimination game versus Silver Bay and Ely taking on South Ridge for a spot in the championship bracket finals.

The tournament concludes this week with play on Tuesday and Thursday in Duluth.