Despite a couple of early- season defeats, the Ely Timberwolves remain a force to reckon with in Section 7A.
That much was evident Monday, when Ely handed previously unbeaten Chisholm its first defeat and dominated at times in a 2511, 25-19, 25-22 sweep at the high school gymnasium.
The Arrowhead Conference matchup capped a busy stretch for the Wolves, who also won three-of-four contests over the weekend at the Greenway Tournament.
The defeat came at the hand of the host Raiders, who also downed the Wolves and ended their 59-match home winning streak Aug. 26 in Ely.
But the Wolves seemed to be connecting on all cylinders against Chisholm, which was 4-0 entering Monday’s matchup.
Ely, which got 10 kills and 10 digs from junior Lydia Shultz, scored 10 straight points to open the contest and it was 15-2 before the Bluestreaks settled in.
By then, the first set was all but decided and the Wolves were never threatened.
Chisholm was much more competitive in the second set and led 18-10 in the third before the Wolves again caught fire.
Ely rattled off 10 straight points, putting the Bluestreaks on edge and going on to complete the sweep.
Junior setter Gretta Lowe passed her way to 25 assists for the Wolves, while fellow junior Amelia Penke connected with eight kills and seven digs.
Sadie Rechichi, a senior, had a team-high 12 digs to go with four kills, while Lowe and Charlotte Hegman both had nine assists.
In pool play at Saturday’s Greenway Tournament, Ely swept Cherry 27-25, 25-15 and notched a 25-11, 25-11 rout of Nashwauk-Keewatin.
Against Cherry, Shultz had eight kills while Penke (five) and Rechichi (four) were next for the Wolves.
It was a big all-around contest for Rechichi, who also had eight digs and four ace serves.
Hegman also had three aces and Violet Udovich contributed three kills.
Hegman and Rechichi combined for 11 kills as the Wolves made quick work of Cherry.
Lowe distributed a dozen assists while Makenzi Huntington added seven more as well as four ace serves.
Peyton Huntington paced the defense with seven digs.
That set the stage for the championship pool and Ely beat Mesabi East in a three-set thriller: 25-10, 2125, 15-3.
Shultz had nine kills and six digs in the win, with Rechichi right behind with another eight kills.
Lowe added another 18 assists and the defense got key contributions from Peyton Huntington (eight), Hegman (seven) and Shultz (six).
Hegman also had five kills.
In what amounted to the championship game, Greenway beat Ely 25-16, 25-19.
Shultz had six kills with Hegman and Udovich adding three apiece.
Lowe and Makenzi Huntington teamed up to combine for 16 set assists.
• In a Sept. 4 road game, it took four sets but the Wolves defeated Cherry 25-7, 25-17, 22-25, 25-13.
Shultz (13) and Hegman (12) both reached dobule- digits in kills, as did Rechichi, who finished with 10 kills, nine digs and a whopping seven ace serves.
Peyton Huntington delivered three more aces, while both Lowe (22 assists) and Makenzi Huntington (16) distributed the ball for the winners.
Shultz recorded nine digs and both Peyton Huntington and Lowe wound up with seven apiece.
• A Sept. 16 road matchup with International Falls has been moved to Ely, and the Wolves will face the best Class A has to offer Sept. 1920 at the Class A Showcase in Burnsville.
The Wolves join many of the other top Class A programs in the state at the annual event.
