This weekend, Pitt athletics will look for success near and far as swim and dive, track and field and wrestling travel to Texas, Virginia and North Carolina while women’s gymnastics looks to claim its first home win.
Swim and dive
Pitt swim and dive is preparing to compete in the Tri-Meet at SMU this week. At 6 p.m. on Friday, the Panthers will race SMU in an exhibition meet, and on Saturday, Pitt will revisit the Mustangs and face Utah starting at noon.
The Panthers are coming off of a double-win at the Tri-Meet at Pitt when it went up against George Washington and West Virginia. The men’s team finished with a score of 227-70 against West Virginia and 210.5-89.5 against George Washington, and the women’s team finished with scores of 240-57 against WVU and 215.5-84.5 against George Washington.
Senior diver Cameron Cash, seemingly recovered from a bulging disc injury last semester, posted a strong effort with a double-win in the men’s platform and 3-meter. On the swimming side, senior Max Matteazzi had three individual wins in the 1000 freestyle, 200 breaststroke and 200 individual medley.
In SMU’s last meet, both of the Mustangs’ teams fell to No. 1 Texas. The Panthers could potentially capitalize on this loss. But both Utes teams won by over 100 points to Denver, making for a competitive Tri-Meet.
Track and field
Pitt track and field travels to Blacksburg, Virginia, this weekend to compete in the VT Hokie Invite. The events will begin on Friday at 2:30 p.m. with the unseeded women’s pole vault.
The Panthers are coming off a massive success at the Nittany Lion Challenge, where they broke two school records and won a total of eight events.
Senior Nigel Hussey, who competed in the 2024 NCAA outdoor championships, won his 60-meter dash preliminary heat along with junior Darren McQueen Jr. In the finals, they moved up to fourth and fifth place in the Pitt program’s top 10 finishes.
Junior Devin Nugent, another outdoor championship competitor, broke the school record for the 600-meter race last set in 2018.
At its last meet, VT had 14 career-best performances, making tough adversaries for the Panthers this weekend.
Wrestling
This weekend, No. 15 Pitt wrestling (8-2, 1-0 ACC) returns to ACC action as they face No. 6 North Carolina State (8-1, 2-0 ACC) on Friday night in Raleigh, North Carolina. The Panthers will look to overcome NC State for the first time since Feb. 10, 2019.
Last time out, the Panthers were victorious against Bucknell, winning 28-10 at Davis Gym. Redshirt sophomore Mac Stout scored a 4-1 victory for Pitt, a 12th-straight win in the 197-pound weight class.
The Wolfpack also came away victorious last Friday, beating Virginia 32-4. NC State will potentially provide Pitt’s biggest challenge of the season as it finished first in last year’s ACC championships.
Women’s gymnastics
No. 25 Pitt women’s gymnastics (3-1, 0-1 ACC) came up just short last weekend, narrowly losing to No. 24 Clemson (1-0, 1-0 ACC) at the Fitzgerald Field House. This weekend, the Panthers once again face an ACC opponent, welcoming No. 15 Stanford (4-0, 1-0 ACC).
Stanford has made a strong start to its inaugural ACC season, claiming victory at the Washington quad meet and securing a win in its first-ever ACC dual meet against North Carolina State.
The Cardinal has proven itself a formidable contender, posting an impressive score of 197.025 against the Wolfpack. Junior Anna Roberts delivered an outstanding performance, achieving a career-best all-around score of 39.650. Additionally, senior Brenna Neault and sophomore Sienna Robinson excelled with near-perfect scores of 9.950 on the beam and 9.925 on the floor exercise, respectively.
The No. 25 Panthers also boast an impressive lineup. All-around first-year Meika Lee and sophomore Emily Todd both earned ACC Newcomer of the Week honors in the last two years — the only Panthers to ever garner the award.
In head coach Casey Jo MacPherson’s second season, Pitt averaged a score of 195.338 across its first two meets — a dramatic improvement from last year’s average of 193.413. MacPherson will hope this strong start will provide a platform to build on against Stanford.