REGIONAL — Ely’s baseball season came to an end Tuesday in Hibbing, as the Timberwolves dropped a pair of games in the Section 7A Final Four to finish the 2026 campaign with a 15-10 record and a third-place section finish.
The Wolves opened the day with an 11-1 six-inning loss to top-seeded South Ridge before falling 2-0 to Cherry in an elimination game that featured another dominant performance from Tigers ace Noah Asuma.
Despite the disappointing finish, Ely Head Coach Frank Ivancich said the season remained a successful one for the Timberwolves, who captured both the Arrowhead Conference and Iron Range Conference championships this spring.
“We just continue to not have an answer against South Ridge in the playoffs,” Ivancich said. “They have just simply dominated us the past five years in section playoffs. We knew coming in that we would have to play very well and get some breaks to be in the game with them especially with Gavin Willeck pitching for SR. That didn’t happen today for us.”
Tuesday’s elimination game against Cherry was a rematch of Ely’s dramatic 4-2 win over the Tigers in the section semifinals last Thursday, when the Wolves erased a 2-0 deficit with a four-run sixth inning rally.
Cherry pitcher Noah Asuma carried a no-hitter into the sixth inning before Ely finally broke through. Gunner Skager opened the inning with a single to right and advanced to third on an Evan Leeson single to left. Owen Marolt followed with an RBI single to score Skager, and Sean Merriman later tied the game with a single to center that plated Leeson.
After a sacrifice bunt by Tyde Brecke moved runners into scoring position, Grant Chittum hit a ground ball that was thrown away by Cherry, allowing both Marolt and Merriman to score for a 4-2 Ely lead.
Marolt then struck out the side in the seventh inning to seal the win.
The Ely senior threw a complete game three-hitter, striking out 11 Tigers.
That victory sent Ely into Tuesday’s winners bracket matchup with South Ridge, but the Panthers quickly took control.
South Ridge scored twice in the first inning and held Ely scoreless through the first three frames before Marolt doubled and later scored on a wild pitch in the fourth to cut the lead to 2-1.
The Panthers answered immediately with four runs in the bottom half of the inning to pull away.
Marolt pitched 3 2/3 innings for Ely, allowing six runs on eight hits while striking out three. South Ridge starter Gavin Willeck limited Ely to one run on six hits while striking out four.
The loss dropped Ely into an elimination game against Cherry just hours later, and this time it was simply too much Noah Asuma.
Asuma drove in both Cherry runs with a sacrifice fly in the first inning and a double off the fence in the sixth. He also dominated on the mound, allowing just four hits while striking out eight.
“The Cherry game, we knew that we were going to face Noah again,” Ivancich said. “He had us hitless for five innings last Thursday so we had a tough challenge as well. As I told our players after we lost, we just faced two of the best pitchers we have seen all year in one day.”
Hunter Halbakken matched Asuma for much of the game, allowing five hits while striking out seven Tigers, but Ely stranded runners in scoring position in the second, third, and fourth innings.
Chittum collected two of Ely’s four hits in the loss.
Ivancich said the emotional lessons from Tuesday’s defeats may ultimately prove as valuable as the baseball itself.
“Baseball is a tough game,” he said. “They say it’s 75 percent mental and 25 percent ability. If you are not mentally able to handle adversity you shut down, find excuses, question everything in order to cope with the stressful situation. Hopefully our players were able to build up some mental toughness today as this is what it’s going to take to get our players to the next level not only in baseball but life as well, which is where you really want to succeed.”
Ivancich said the program will especially miss seniors Hunter Halbakken, Drew Johnson, and Jack Davies, who helped Ely reach the section final four in each of their four varsity seasons.
The trio played on teams that finished third in sections in 2023 and 2026, second in 2025, and fourth in 2024.
“I’m sure that these players will once again be acknowledged for All-Conference, All-Section, and All-State honors when those are released within the next few weeks,” Ivancich said.
The summer baseball season will begin immediately for Ely, with Senior and Junior Legion teams opening play this weekend. The Ely Baseball Association will host a seven-team Junior Legion tournament beginning Friday at 3 p.m. and continuing through Saturday and Sunday.
“We encourage you all to come out and watch some baseball, enjoy a meal at our concession stand,” Ivancich said, calling it the “best concessions north of Target Field.”