Pitt swim makes a splash, crushing six pool records against Georgia Tech

On Saturday, Pitt swim and dive finished up its two-day meet against Georgia Tech. The Panthers broke six pool records, and the Yellow Jackets broke one of their own. 

Pitt set new pool records in the women’s 200 medley relay, the women’s 50 freestyle, the men’s 100 freestyle, men’s 200 breaststroke, the men’s 400 individual medley and the women’s 400 freestyle relay. Georgia Tech set a pool record for the men’s 200 backstroke. 

The women’s 200 medley relay comprised junior Claire Jansen, junior Cecilia Viberg, fifth-year Sophie Yendell and sophomore Avery Kudlac. Yendell also set a pool record in the 50 freestyle and the women’s 400 freestyle relay, along with Kudlac, Jansen, and sophomore Sydney Gring. 

“It’s always great to [set a pool record] at a home pool too, with a massive crowd.” Yendell said. “The energy was really great. I mean, even from the get go a big thing that is becoming, like, in swimming now is you can go fast at any point of the season. And that’s something [Head Coach] Chase [Krietler] emphasizes.”

This is Krietler’s third year coaching the Panthers. Yendell cited improvement under Krietler’s coaching strategies. 

“He’s definitely very knowledgeable,” Yendell said. “He’s good at applying it. He works well. He’s really good at coaching the athlete, rather than just one set.”

First year Julian Koch set a pool record in the 100 freestyle with a time of 42.93. Senior Max Matteazzi set two pool records in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 1:54:45 and in the 400 individual medley with a time of 3:43.63. 

This is Matteazzi’s second year with the Panthers. As a qualifier for the 2024 Italian Olympic Trials, Matteazzi has had to transition to swimming in the United States.

“Basically last season was my first season here in America, and it was kind of different because in Italy…different practices, different stuff,” Matteazzi said. 

“And I found last year really fun. I think I’m more understanding the process, especially with the difference with the pool, because we are swimming…25 meters. So I think I’m understanding this process a little bit more.”

Pitt women’s swimming and diving won 161-135, while the men’s team lost 127-173. This is the second meet the women’s team has won in a row. Pitt’s diving team also posted strong results in the 1m and 3m springboard competitions. 

Sophomore Mariana Osorio Mendoza and first year Noah Bernard placed first in the 1m, and Pitt had 2-3 finishes for the men’s and women’s teams in the 3m. 

Up next, the Panthers travel to Austin to compete in the Texas Diving Invitational.