On Dec. 29, the Huskies men’s hockey team opened play in the 56th Great Lakes Invitational with a scrappy 0-0 stalemate in Ann Arbor against the third-ranked Michigan Wolverines. Blake Pietila stopped all 30 shots he faced to ensure the shutout, as Michigan Tech killed off two Wolverine power plays in the process. The following day, Michigan Tech lost in overtime to Michigan State, 3-2. The Huskies generated 45 shots with Nick Nardella and Brian Halonen each scoring a goal apiece. Michigan Tech is 10-8-1 and holds the No. 19 ranking in the USCHO.com poll.
Michigan Tech women’s basketball ended 2021 with a pair of tough losses to No. 2 Dury on Dec. 18 and Lindenwood on Dec. 19. Michigan Tech put the Dury Panthers on upset alert when they jumped to a 41-34 lead at the half, but the Panthers held the Huskies to just 21 points in the second half en route to their 12th win of the year. Michigan Tech fell to Lindenwood by a score of 75-59. Three Huskies scored in double figures in the losing effort. Michigan Tech bounced back after the holiday break to pummel Parkside 93-76. The Huskies shot over 50% in the game with Ellie Mackay scoring 36 points in the victory. Michigan Tech currently stands at 9-4 with a 4-1 record in conference play.
On Dec. 15, Michigan Tech men’s basketball shot 62.3% against Finlandia in an exhibition game that resulted in a 122-52 win for the Huskies. All but one Husky scored in the beatdown while eight players made at least one three-point field goal. After missing out on games versus Winona State and Algoma University due to the impact of COVID-19, the Huskies didn’t play again until Jan 6, where they outlasted Parkside 59-53, in a scrappy game. On Jan 8, Michigan Tech blew past Purdue Northwest in an 83-55 demolition. Michigan Tech tallied 15 three-point field goals as a team, while Eric Carl led the team with 22 points. The Huskies improved to 9-3 with a 5-1 record in conference play.
From Jan. 2 to Jan 7 the Huskies Nordic ski team competed in the US Cross Country Ski National Championships in Soldier Hollow, UT. On Jan. 2, Anabel Needham placed fourth in the women’s U23 division for the Skate Sprint while Adam Witkowski placed 17th in the men’s U23 division for the skate sprint. For the Mas Start Skate on Jan. 4, Skylar Patten earned a PR and placed twentieth in the men’s division while Henriette Semb and Olivia Laven both placed in the top fifteen in the women’s division. For the Interval Start Classic on Jan. 6, three Huskies placed in the top 50 overall for each of the men’s and women’s divisions. The next day Anabel Needham secured a first-place finish in the U23 division for the ClassicSprint, earning her a spot in the U23 World Ski Championships.
