This Story was written by Michigan Tech Athletics

DETROIT – Jake Jackson and Brent Baltus scored first-period goals to give Michigan Tech an early 2-0 lead, but Michigan rallied and eventually knocked off the Huskies 4-2 in the 51st annual Great Lakes Invitational championship game Wednesday night at Joe Louis Arena.

"It was three games in one tonight," said head coach Mel Pearson. "We got off to a good start but we never felt comfortable. Obviously the second was their game and then the third I thought we came out, pushed the pace and drew some penalties but we couldn't get the bounce we needed."
 

Jackson started the scoring just 2:55 into the contest when he sent a laser past Michigan goaltender Steve Racine. After a great play to exit the defensive zone, Jackson took a pass from Dylan Steman, burned a Michigan defender wide and put a wrister just under the crossbar for his first goal as a Husky.

Baltus doubled the Tech lead at 14:21 of the first with a power-play marker from the edge of the crease. Two great passes on the man-advantage opened up space for Mark Auk, who settled the puck and put a hard shot towards the net. Batlus, who was posted up in front, got a stick on it and knocked the shot home for a 2-0 Tech lead.

The Wolverines countered with three second-period goals and sealed the victory with an empty-netter in the final minute of the game.

Jamie Phillips started for Tech and made 18 saves. Reid Sturos, Matt Roy and Dylan Steman all had single assists in the contest.

Michigan Tech (11-7-2 overall; 9-6-1 WCHA) is off until Jan. 8 and 10 when it travels to Arizona for the Desert Hockey Classic. The Huskies will play Connecticut in the semifinals on Jan. 8 before playing either Arizona State of Yale on Jan. 10.

NOTES: Baltus and Auk were named to the GLI All-Tournament Team … Michigan Tech outshot Michigan 29-22 … The Huskies were 1-for-3 on the power play while the Wolverines scored once in their three tries … The title game matchup was the 10th all-time meeting between MTU and U-M in the GLI championship game.

FRIDAY: MICHIGAN TECH BEATS MICHIGAN STATE IN OT

DETROIT---Brent Baltus scored the game-winning goal 3:58 into overtime to give Michigan Tech a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over Michigan State in the Great Lakes Invitational semifinals Tuesday at Joe Louis Arena. 

Alex Gillies and Jake Lucchini also scored for Tech, which advances to its third GLI title game during the Mel Pearson era. The Huskies last won the tournament crown in 2012.

"I thought it was an even game and a good game," said Pearson. "We've been off two weeks since our last game so you never know what you're going to get. We got better as the game went on and their goalie was great for two periods. I'm extremely proud of our players for staying with it and that's one thing about this team – they'll play until the end."

The comeback started 8:22 into the third period when Gillies knocked home a loose puck from the edge of the crease. After going hard to the net, Gillies was pushed into Michigan State goaltender Jake Hildebrand but managed to regain his feet, find the puck sitting in the crease and bat it under Hildebrand to make it 2-1.

Then, with just 1:26 to play in regulation, Lucchini buried from the right circle to tie it. The play started when Mark Auk settled a loose puck and drew a defender to him before feathering a pass to Lucchini. The freshman moved to his forehand and put a wrister into the back of the net, setting the stage for Baltus' heroics.

The Huskies carried play for the majority of the contest and outshot Michigan State 36-23 – including a 27-14 advantage in the game's final 43:58.

Jamie Phillips started between the pipes for the Huskies and collected his 11th win of the season after turning in a 21-save effort.

Auk (0-2), Gillies (1-1) and Baltus (1-1) all had two points in the victory, while Cliff Watson and Chris Leibinger collected single assists.

Michigan Tech (11-6-2 overall; 9-6-1 WCHA) will play the winner of Michigan and Northern Michigan Wednesday the 51st Great Lakes Invitational championship game. Puck-drop is set for 7 p.m. at Joe Louis Arena and the game can be seen live on FOX Sports Detroit.

NOTES: The Huskies were 0-4 on the power play. MSU scored once in four chances with the man-advantage … Gillies' two-point night matched a single-game career-high … Tech will be trying to win its 11th GLI title. The Huskies have previously won the event in 1968, 1970, 1971, 1974, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979, 1980 and 2012.