Thunderwolves ready to resume play as OUA restarts season after Omicron pause
Men's and women's basketball teams hit the hardcourt after month-long shutdown
Tiffany Reynolds is counting down the minutes until the start of her first game in 2022.
The Lakehead Thunderwolves women's basketball star will take to the court at the CJ Sanders Fieldhouse on Friday night, as the Guelph Gryphons travel to Thunder Bay.
This weekend marks the return to action for Ontario university athletes, who had their season paused for a month due to the Omicron surge. Provincial regulations did not grant university sports with the "elite" status that would have allowed them to continue.
"I'm definitely super excited. I think we all are," Reynolds said on Thursday.
"I'm a bit nervous. I feel like I'm always nervous and we have to get back into it. But I get nervous. It'll turn into energy out there and I'm pretty pumped. Guelph is a good team and I think we did a lot of good prep. We should be ready"
The Thunderwolves (1-7) enter the second half of the campaign needing to find a winning formula to climb into playoff potention. Guelph, one of their OUA West division foes, enters the weekend sporting a 3-3 record.
Reynolds said she's excited to get back on their home floor.
"Fifty per cent capacity in Thunder Bay is a huge thing. You still have a lot of fans that are cheering super loud and you know they're always there to support you," she said.
"That's one of the most fun aspects here."
In men's hoops action, Lakehead (3-5) will face a Gryphons team (1-5) below them in the division standings.
Lakehead's men's hockey team (3-6-0) got back on the ice on Thursday afternoon, falling 6-2 on the road to the Brock Badgers. The Thunderwolves will play a two-game set against the University of Toronto Varsity Blues on Friday and Saturday.
The Thunderwolves women's volleyball squad (0-5) is set to return to the court on Feb. 18, when they host Guelph for three matches.