David Archambeau/For the Gazette Michigan Tech athletic director Suzanne Sanregret presents the Huskies with the Miner’s Cup after their win over Northern Michigan Saturday at Kearly Stadium in Houghton.

By DAVER KARNOSKY

dkarnosky@mininggazette.com

HOUGHTON — With two key touchdown receptions from senior wide receiver Brandon Michalak, and a 78-yard punt return for a touchdown by freshman wide receiver Jaxon Lippert, the Michigan Tech Huskies football team retained the Miner’s Cup for the 14th straight year with a 39-9 victory Saturday over the Northern Michigan Wildcats at Kearly Stadium in Houghton.

Michalak’s first touchdown was a 25-yard strike from senior quarterback Alex Fries with 11:54 left in the second quarter. The catch capped a four-play, 64-yard drive for the Huskies, and it broke a 3-3 tie.

His second touchdown catch came in the third, when he came down with a 58-yard reception and run for the touchdown with 13:04 left.

Michalak was happy to be a part of the 14th straight victory for the Huskies in the yearly matchup.

“It means everything,” he said. “It’s so much fun. The preparation that goes into this week is unlike any other, and it is a great time.”

Individually, Michalak only made three catches on the afternoon, but he used those effectively, as he gained 106 yards and scored the two touchdowns.

“It’s amazing,” said Michalak about getting the chance to help the team earn the win. “It’s great to see the trust the coach has in me, the relationship I’ve built up with my quarterback, and just everything, all the pieces come together. I can’t do without my ‘O’ (offensive) line and my quarterback, so I’m just thankful.”

For the Huskies, the win came at a point in the season where they needed a course reversal after a pair of losses had dropped them to 4-3 on the year and 1-2 in GLIAC play.

“It was big for many reasons,” said Huskies coach Dan Mettlach. “Like I said the other day, I felt like, after the Davenport game, we were looking at the film and kicking ourselves that we had too many chances, especially at home, that we couldn’t put that one away. Last weekend, We were never in the game. The guys got it flushed and we were on the Northern before we even got back on the bus down at Ferris (State). So, the guys approached it the right way.

“It just worked out that you have your rival coming in at a time when you’re on a two-game skid. We didn’t have to do anything to get them up for this game.”

Mettlach was also quick to point out that the Huskies, as a team, might have been too hyped for the start of the game, and that energy led to a first quarter where very little connected the way they wanted it to. If not for a 42-yard field goal from freshman kicker Avery Kucharski, the Huskies and Wildcats would have come away with a scoreless tie after 15 minutes of action.

In the second quarter, the Wildcats answered with a 31-yard kick by Michael Karlen to even things before Michalak came up with his first touchdown reception.

Then, the game turned on a flashy play by Lippert on an excellent punt from Wildcats punter Owen Halverson that appeared set to pin the Huskies deep in their own territory. That is when Lippert made a pair of moves and found room down the left sideline all the way to the end zone.

“It was huge at that point,” said Mettlach. “I mean, we have a drop on a vertical throw in the end of the first quarter. We miss a guy that’s four yards behind somebody on the first drive. I mean, things were not going well. We finally get the score to make it a 10-3 game.

“But, when that one finally went, especially with what the defense was doing, and what they were trying to do on offense, it was kind of, I don’t want to say you get some breathing room, but, there’s a little bit less stress at that point knowing that you’re two scores up at that point.”

Mettlach was proud of how well Lippert handled his first touch of his career.

“With what we were doing offensively, it was much-needed at that point for him to make that kind of play,” Mettlach said. “It was just great to see a true freshman, first-time touching the football in a game. To make that move that he made initially, and then get it into the black, was incredible.”

The Huskies tacked on three more points on a 39-yard field goal from Kucharski with 40 seconds left in the first half to take a 20-3 lead into the locker room.

Michalak’s second touchdown reception was the lone scoring play of the third quarter, and it gave the Huskies a 26-3 advantage heading into the game’s final 15 minutes.

In the fourth quarter, the Huskies turned their offense over to freshman quarterback Alex Bueno, who scored on a 34-yard touchdown run to cap a seven-play, 96-yard drive with 11:40 left. He then threw a 12-yard touchdown pass to freshman wide receiver Ethan Hull with 6:46 left. That throw capped a nine-play, 50-yard scoring drive.

“I love what ‘AB’ does,” said Mettlach. “It’s not easy being talented and being the backup. Everybody always talks about preparing as though you’re the starter. That’s easier said than done, but he comes to work every single day.

“I mentioned this a week ago about our backups, they get as many reps as the first-team guys, and it’s for days like this where we finally get him on the field. We’re not changing anything with our offense, but they have to go execute what we’re doing. I think we saw today, not only with his arm, but, of course, when he gets loose with his feet, he’s a difference-maker with the ball in his hands too. He’s been good all year.”

Bueno led the Huskies in rushing with 70 yards on four carries and a touchdown.

The Wildcats got one touchdown back late when running back Tucker Welch got over the goal line from 33 yards out with just 1:44 left in the contest.

UP NEXT

With the win, the 5-3 Huskies head out on the road this weekend to face GLIAC-newcomer Roosevelt in Chicago, Illinois.