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The start of the summer means that once again Veterans Memorial Field will be a focal point of activity again in Ely.
A seven-team Junior Legion baseball event this weekend is the first of six separate tournaments to be held at the ballpark over the course of the next several weeks, all leading up to the Division II State Legion Tournament July 31-Aug. 2.
The z‘UpNorth Realty Classic began Friday and runs through Sunday at the historic ballpark, while in two weeks eight teams will be in town for the 37th annual DQ Grill and Chill Legion Classic.
Those tournaments are just the start of a full summer of action, with teams from dozens of communities coming to town - many for one or more nights - for various tournaments.
Teams from Kenyon, Proctor, Duluth East and Cromwell-McGregor are among those that are part of the lineup for the DQ event, which started in 1988.
The Ely Echo Midsummer Classic was added to the tournament lineup in the early-2000s and has grown into perhaps the premiere Legion baseball event in northeastern Minnesota.
This year’s tournament is slated for July 11-14, and has expanded to four days for the second year in a row.
It involves a whopping 11 teams: Ely, Viroqua (Wisc.), Roseau, St. Louis Park, Miesville, Warroad, Walker, Aitkin, Thunder Bay, Hibbing and Moose Lake-Barnum.
“If you look at the Midsummer Classic, that’s one where every team stays multiple nights in town,” said Legion coach and tournament director Tom Coombe. “We’ve expanded to 11 teams and we might be able to add one yet and get to 12. That’s a tournament that brings hundreds of people to Ely every summer and is great for the local economy.”
The action continues July 19-20, with opening round action in the Senior Legion Division II Northeast Substate Tournament, and that tournament continues the leads right into Junior Legion Division II Substate Tournament with dates on July 24, 27 and 28.
Those are just warm-up acts, however, prior to the main event.
Ely has been selected to host the Division II Senior Legion State Tournament for 2025, which will coincide with the 50th anniversary of the first Legion state tourney held in town.
Teams will arrive in town on Wednesday July 30, with a banquet that evening and the action beginning with four state quarterfinal games on Thursday, July 31.
That event runs through the weekend, culminating with the state title game at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Aug. 2.
Ely last held a state tournament in 2022, when the Division II Junior Legion Tournament was held here, and this marks the eighth state tournament to be held in Ely since 1999.
“This is an event that’s going to fill hotel rooms locally, and even across the Iron Range,” said Coombe. “Some businesses compared their traffic during the state tournament to Blueberry weekend the last time we hosted, and there’s no doubt the town will fill up that weekend. We’re excited to bring state tournament baseball back to Ely and its impact will be immense.”
