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by Tom Coombe
Ely’s high school cross country teams are sending three runners to state.
Senior Caid Chittum and sophomore Molly Brophy punched return tickets while freshman Mattie Lindsay gained her first career state berth Thursday at Coleraine.
Chittum was third among the boys while Brophy placed fourth in the girls race at the Section 7A meet.
Lindsay was 11th among the girls to also earn a trip to the state meet, set for Nov. 2 at Minneapolis.
Both Ely teams had strong days but won’t move on after matching fourth-place finishes. However, Ely's Sarah Spate was named the Section 7A Assistant Coach of the Year.
Chittum ensured his cross-country career will close on the state stage after taking third in a field of 112 at the section event, held on a comfortable, cloudy day at Eagle Ridge Golf Course.
The senior finished the 5,000-meter course in 17:13.9.
Brophy and Lindsay will both advance out of the 7A girls field, which had 101 participants.
Brophy took fourth in 20:05, about a minute off the pace set by champion Olivia Pascuzzi, while Lindsay picked off one of the last state bids by taking 11th in 20:37.6.
The Ely girls were just a point away from third place and six points shy of second-place Greenway/Nashwauk-Keewatin.
Eighth-grader Katy Brophy took 26th (21:58.6), while junior Elsa Ellerbroek (36th, 22:17.7) and sophomore Isabella Macho (37th, 22:21.6) were also in the top half of the field.
Rounding out Ely’s lineup were Anna Dunn (67th, 24:41.7) and Brandy Strange (78th, 25:32.9).
Chittum led a solid Ely boys effort and was 12 seconds behind champion Garrett Guida of McGregor.
Senior Silas Solum closed out his prep career with a 25th-place finish (18:20.6) in 7A and teammate Brooks Brenny, a sophomore, was two seconds behind in 26th.
Sophomore Mason Kurnava placed 36th in 18:37.8, while Otto Devine (51st, 19:12), Eli Olson (60th, 19:37.6) and Milo McClelland (61st, 19:39.7) followed.
The Ely boys were seven points behind third-place Carlton-Wrenshall.
