Practices begin for EHS winter sports

It may not yet be winter in Ely, but the winter sports season is just about ready to get underway for local high school athletes.Both the hockey and girls basketball teams begin the long winter grind with their first practice sessions on Monday.At the Ely Arena, third-year head coach Brian Ensign and new assistant coaches Kurt Simer and Mark Stepec welcome a Timberwolves team looking to make strides this season.Ely rebounded from a 1-6 start a year ago to finish 11-13, falling to eventual section champion Virginia in the playoffs.Several returning seniors provide experience for the Wolves, who open the regular season Dec. 2 against Holy Family, a private school near the Twin Cities.Meanwhile, the second-year area girls high school hockey team, based in Babbitt-Embarrass but with players from Tower-Soudan and Ely, as well, has been at it for a week with practices at the Babbitt Arena. Their first contest is scheduled for Thursday at Fort Frances.High school girls basketball teams around Minnesota can also start practice Monday, and Ely drops down to the Class A level this year after spending the last two seasons as a Class AA squad.Judy Klun, in the third season of her second stint as head coach, can build around a returning nucleus including seniors Betsy Guck and Kelsey Ivancich, junior Barb Klun and sophomore Tomi McDonald.The Wolves, 7-15 last winter, start the 2005-06 campaign on the road Nov. 29, against International Falls.Ely’s high school boys basketball team starts practice Nov. 21 in preparation for a Dec. 9 season-opener at Orr, while the cross country skiing team is eligible to begin dryland workouts. Weather permitting, the skiers open up with a sprint event at Duluth Dec. 3 with the Ely Classic to follow Dec. 10 at Hidden Valley.