Ely’s high school softball team was all but flawless for 20 outs on Monday afternoon.
But 21 need to be recorded to secure a win.
That last out proved elusive in the top of the seventh, as visiting Mt. Iron-Buhl rallied and scored twice with two outs to pull out a 2-1 high school softball victory over the Timberwolves.
Ely fell to 8-6 for the season and may have lost a chance for home-field advantage in the Section 7A playoffs, which begin Tuesday at home sites.
Senior pitcher Zoe MacKenzie bottled up the Rangers for six innings of Monday’s clash, but Ely was almost equally baffled by the Rangers’ Magan Carlson.
Ely took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second, when Julia Zgonc singled in Lindi Zemke.
The Wolves stranded runners in scoring position in the fourth and fifth frames, and they couldn’t score after a two-out triple by Zgonc in the sixth.
It left the small crack that MIB finally took advantage of in the seventh.
MacKenzie blanked the Rangers through six and got the first two outs in the seventh.
But MIB wouldn’t be denied. An infield hit kept the inning alive and a twoout error gave the Rangers new life.
Brenna Tiedeman then stepped to the plate and delivered a two-run single and the Rangers took the lead.
Ely had one last chance in the seventh, putting two runners aboard, but the Rangers snared a Zemke fly ball to right and they escaped with both the win and a regular season sweep over the Wolves.
MacKenzie suffered the tough-luck defeat. The senior went the distance, allowed only five hits and did not issue a walk. She also struck out six and both MIB runs were unearned.
• Playoff seeding will be determined over the weekend and Ely is now rated sixth in the section, with only the top-four getting home matchups when the playoffs begin Tuesday.
The Wolves close out the regular season Saturday with home tilts against Floodwood (11 a.m.) and North Woods (3 p.m.).
• Ella Perish doubled, scored twice and drove in four runs in the Wolves’ 14-2, five-inning decision against Chisholm on May 8.
Zgonc went two-for-three with three runs batted in, while Penke scored three times and added two hits.
Both Peyton Huntington and MacKenzie chipped in with two hits for the Wolves, and sophomore pitcher Naomi Archer gave up three hits with two strikeouts.
• Class AA International Falls scored a 13-7 triumph over the host Wolves on May 7.
The Broncos took a 10-0 lead into the bottom of the fifth, but the Wolves countered with six runs and made it a game.
Penke had two hits including a double, Zemke scored twice and Zgonc was two-for-four.
MacKenzie gave up 15 hits in the defeat.
