A Golden Ticket to First Place: Phi Kappa Tau’s Chocolate Factory Wins Snow Statue Contest

The snozzberries taste like victory for Phi Kappa Tau. The Hancock-based Greek organization extended its winning streak in the Michigan Technological University Winter Carnival overall monthlong statue competition to five years in a row with the Willy Wonka-themed "Charlie and the Chocolate Factory."

The suspense was terrible — but unlike Wonka's sardonic wish in the classic movie, it didn't last, as Blue Key National Honor Society announced the 2023 snow statue winners in the afternoon on Thursday, Feb. 9. Teams in monthlong and one-night categories created statues based on the overall Carnival theme "Tasty Foods for Wintry Moods." Within each category there are three divisions: co-ed, women's and men's. In both monthlong and one-night competition, the overall statue winner is determined by the top scores in each of the three divisions.

In second place overall was Tau Kappa Epsilon's "Frozen Noodles Fill the Pan as Samurai Defend Japan." Alpha Gamma Delta and Sigma Tau Gamma took third with "Let Us Join Hands and Explore Candyland: Take a trip with us through this classic family board game."

Monthlong Snow Statue Division Results

Of the 12 overall monthlong statue entries, Phi Kappa Tau and Tau Kappa Epsilon also placed first and second, respectively, in the men's division, while sole entrant Alpha Sigma Tau took first in the women's division with "Oh it's So Grand, the Wonderful and TASTy World of Candy Land!"

Alpha Gamma Delta and Sigma Tau Gamma's entry placed first in co-ed monthlong competition, while Delta Zeta and Lambda Chi Alpha earned second place with "A Scrumptiously Sculpted Gingerbread Cottage." Sigma Phi Epsilon and Theta Chi Epsilon rounded out the top three with "The Meddling Munchies with Theta Chi and Sig Ep."

All-Nighter Overall Snow Statue Results

"Jonah is the snack, ravenous sea monster, does he smile back?" earned perennial top contender St. Albert the Great University Parish Campus Catholic Ministries first overall in the one-night building competition. MTU Swing Club's "Banana Split for My Baby" took second and The Navigators' "Last Supper" placed third.

All-Nighter Snow Statue Division Results

Of the 53 total one-night entries, St. Al's also earned the top spot in the co-ed division, with Swing Club in second and Navigators in third. In the women's division, the Society of Women Engineers placed first with "Alphabet SWEoup." Mafia Hall's "Pineapple from Spongebob" took second. The Bastille earned first in the men's all-nighter division with "Cheeseburger" followed by Sigma Rho's "Pasty with Gravy Boat." Domino's took third with "Domino's."

Overall Winter Carnival winners will be announced later this weekend. For a complete list of all the Winter Carnival statue winners and events happening throughout the weekend, visit the Michigan Tech Winter Carnival website. Find more photos to enjoy, download and share on Michigan Tech Flickr.

Michigan Technological University is a public research university founded in 1885 in Houghton, Michigan, and is home to more than 7,000 students from 55 countries around the world. Consistently ranked among the best universities in the country for return on investment, Michigan’s flagship technological university offers more than 120 undergraduate and graduate degree programs in science and technology, engineering, computing, forestry, business and economics, health professions, humanities, mathematics, social sciences, and the arts. The rural campus is situated just miles from Lake Superior in Michigan's Upper Peninsula, offering year-round opportunities for outdoor adventure.

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