Sibling athletes Taylor and Nate Heise contributed to their teams in major ways while they were thousands of miles apart from each other Monday.
Team USA women’s ice hockey forward Taylor Heise, who is taking part in her first Winter Olympics, scored one of five goals for the Americans in their blowout win against Sweden in a semifinal match.
The U.S. women will advance to a rivalry, gold medal showdown against Team Canada that’s set to start at 1:10 p.m. ET Thursday.
Hours after the win, Heise’s brother, Iowa State guard Nate Heise, came up clutch as he drained a late, go-ahead three-point shot against the No. 2 Houston Cougars that brought his No. 6 Cyclones to a 70-67 win at home.
The pair of Ws arrived just two days after their brother, Winona State forward Ryan Heise, scored a career-high 30 points against Sioux Falls, although the effort wasn’t enough to bring his team to victory.
The siblings’ father, Tony Heise, teased with The Minnesota Star Tribune that his son Ryan “started it,” causing Taylor and Nate to be “amped up a little bit” on Monday.
“They all like competing against each other. It’s fun,” he explained to the newspaper.
Team USA’s Taylor Heise (right) celebrates with her teammates following her goal against Sweden in the second period of Monday’s semifinal match in Milan.
Carolyn Kaster via Associated Press
Iowa State’s Nate Heise celebrates following the Cyclones’ win over Houston on Monday.
Charlie Neibergall via Associated Press
Nate Heise told reporters that it was a “pretty good day” for the Heise family, noting that he believes some of his relatives in Milan went to sleep before Iowa State’s game against Houston.
“So they’ll wake up to some fun texts,” he said, adding that he watched his sister’s big performance prior to his clutch efforts on the court.