Panthers stay busy on break

While students fled to warm weather and sandy beaches over break, Pitt sports had a busy week. The women’s diving team saw members qualify for nationals, but gymnastics fell short despite a solid performance. Tennis had mixed results and is still seeking the team’s first ACC win, even with near perfection in nonconference play.

Women’s Diving

Pitt women’s diving had a successful week at the NCAA Zone A Championships at the Rutgers Aquatic Center in Piscataway, New Jersey — with several Pitt divers qualifying for the NCAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships.

Senior Meme Sharp and first year Lydia Rosenthall both qualified for the national championships in the 1-meter springboard, posting a 548.55 and 528.95, respectively. Both also qualified for the 3-meter springboard, with Sharp scoring a 572.30 and Rosenthall finishing with a 569.90. This marks Sharp’s third consecutive trip to the NCAA Championships.

Sophomore Krista Jones just missed qualifying for the championships on platform, finishing with a score of 442.7. Likewise, sophomore Cortnee Williams missed the mark for the national championships in the 1-meter springboard, scoring a 482.65. Both Jones and Williams were finalists at the Zone A Championships in their respective events.

Sharp and Rosenthall will be joined at the NCAA Championships by senior swimmers Lina Rathsack and Amanda Richey, who had both previously qualified. The championships will be held in Columbus, Ohio, March 14-17 at the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion.

Gymnastics

Gymnastics posted Pitt’s fourth-highest bars score in program history at 49.175 but came in last in the tri-meet against No. 18 George Washington and West Virginia at the Charles E. Smith Center in Washington, D.C., over the weekend.

First year Haley Brechwald continued her strong season with two top-five finishes, placing second on beam and fourth on floor with a 9.875 in each event.

Seniors Catie Conrad and Taylor Laymon tied for second on bars with a 9.875, while sophomore Alecia Petrikis placed third on vault, also with a 9.875 — rounding out the Panthers’ top-five finishes of the day.

Sophomore Deven Herbine tied her career high on vault, posting a 9.825, and first year Jordan Ceccarini tied a career high on floor with a 9.825.

Pitt was in second place after bars competitions, the first event. West Virginia leapfrogged the Panthers after beam and never looked back. George Washington finished on top at the end of the meet. The Colonials won with a score of 196.875, followed by the Mountaineers at 196.425 and the Panthers at 195.500.

Pitt will travel to Chapel Hill, N.C., to face UNC in its last regular season matchup Saturday, March 17, at Carmichael Arena.

Tennis

Pitt Tennis had a busy break competing in three matches, winning one and losing two. The week started off with a weekend trip to Florida to face Miami and Florida State and concluded at home against Morgan State.

The Panthers were winless on their road trip, first dropping a 4-0 decision to Miami March 2, before losing to No. 23 Florida State 7-0 March 4.

During the Miami match, senior Callie Frey had her seven-match win streak brought to an end, as she lost to first year Ulyana Shirokova 6-1, 6-0 in singles competition.

At Florida State, junior Luisa Varon was the only Panther to win a set, forcing a third set in her match against Petra Hule, who ultimately won 7-5, 6-7, 10-6.

Pitt came back home Saturday, March 10, and landed themselves back in the win column with a 6-1 win over Morgan State in their last nonconference match of the season.

Frey and her partner, first year Camila Moreno, won the only doubles match of the day, 6-1, against Morgan State senior Danielle Thompson and first year Peggy Rooke. Morgan State was not able to field enough players to play the typical three doubles matches and dropped a point in singles for only having five available players.

Frey also returned to her winning ways in singles competition, defeating Morgan State first year Asmara Faluke 6-1, 6-3, putting her at 8-2 on the year.

Pitt now sits at 6-5, with a record of 6-1 in nonconference play and winless in the ACC at 0-4. The Panthers look to pick up that first win in conference play when they host No. 10 Wake Forest Friday, March 16, at the Oxford Athletic Club.