Weekend sports recap: Volleyball, women’s soccer pick up victories

Pitt athletics went on a road trip, with each program competing away from Pittsburgh this weekend. The Panther football team may have stolen the show with their road win against Virginia Tech, but plenty of other programs competed over the weekend. Each team fared well against ACC and non-conference opponents. Here’s the results from each team’s weekend competitions.

Cross Country

Pitt cross country finished out its regular season campaign at the Penn State National Open last Friday. On the men’s side, redshirt sophomore Jack Miller cruised to a No. 2 overall finish, leading the team to third place at the meet. The group finished with 71 points, leaving them one point behind cross-state rival Penn State. Cornell University ultimately won the race, scoring a dominating 34 points.

On the women’s side, first-year Emily Jobes battled and finished No. 34 overall, as the team finished No. 10 in a field of 16 teams. The Panthers scored 286 points — putting them well behind conference rival Syracuse, who finished No. 9 overall with a score of 270. Michigan handily won the meet with 33 points.

The program will travel to South Bend, Indiana for the ACC championship on Oct. 29.

Swimming and diving

The Panthers traveled to South Bend, Indiana for a tri-meet against ACC rival Notre Dame and Cleveland State. The men’s team defeated Cleveland State, but came up short against Notre Dame 200.5-152.5. Similarly, the women’s team defeated Cleveland State, but fell to the Fighting Irish 271-82.

Individually, a few athletes posted impressive performances. Sophomore Marcin Goraj posted two victories in the 100 and 200 yard backstroke events. Junior Daisy Anderson also swam to a first place finish in the women’s 400 yard IM. In diving, the men’s team swept the competition in both the 1M and 3M events. 

The Panthers will return home for a tri-meet against George Washington and Penn State on Nov. 5.

Women’s volleyball

Coming off a loss to No. 18 Georgia Tech, the No. 4 Panthers cruised to two victories on their Florida road trip over the weekend.

The Panthers defeated Miami 3-1 on Friday. After losing the first set 25-21, Pitt bounced back with three straight wins to defeat the Hurricanes. Fifth-year right side hitter Chinaza Ndee led Pitt in scoring with 17 kills. Ndee currently has 216 total kills on the year.

The team then traveled north to face off against Florida State on Sunday. The Panthers defeated the Seminoles 3-1, ending the Seminoles 17-match home win streak. Graduate student outside hitter Kayla Lund racked up 17 kills to lead Pitt in scoring, while senior middle blocker Sabrina Starks posted a dominating eight blocks.

The team will face off against Notre Dame and No. 2 Louisville on a crucial road trip next weekend.

Men’s soccer

The men’s soccer team suffered a road loss in double overtime, falling to unranked Notre Dame on Saturday night in South Bend. The Fighting Irish defeated the Panthers 1-0.

The Panthers began the match on the attack, outshooting the Fighting Irish 4-3 in the first half. But both teams failed to score a single goal in regulation. Graduate student goal-keeper Nico Campuzano registered four saves in the contest, but it would not be enough.

Notre Dame graduate student forward Dawson McCartney scored the game winning goal off a rebound in the second overtime period.

The Panthers will return to Pittsburgh for a conference match-up against Virginia on Friday night.

Women’s soccer

The women’s soccer team defeated ACC rival Syracuse 4-2 in its Monday afternoon game, picking up a win on the road.

The Orange took the lead early in the first half, but the Panthers fired back, scoring three unanswered goals. First-year forward Sarah Schupansky scored first for the Panthers, to take the team lead with seven individual goals.

The Panthers rattled off 27 total shots, including 15 shots on goal in their win against the Orange.

The Panthers will play Boston College at home on Thursday night at 6 p.m.