Weekend Preview | Spring sports in full swing

Pitt athletics is heading into one of its busiest weekends in the spring schedule. Women’s and men’s soccer are heating back up, baseball and softball head into a tough middle-of-the-season stretch and individual Panthers try for success in wrestling and swim and dive championships. 

Swimming and diving  

Ten Pitt women will compete in this year’s NCAA women’s swimming and diving championships. The event started on Wednesday and will continue through Saturday at the Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatics Center in Federal Way, Washington.  

After a competitive showcase at the ACC championship where the women placed eighth, their highest team finish since 2015, the Panthers will hope to make an even bigger mark this weekend.  

Wrestling  

Pitt’s three ACC champions all earned top 10 seeds with sophomore Mac Stout earning the highest at No. 6, graduate student Reece Heller earning the No. 9 seed and sophomore Dayton Pitzer earning the No. 10 seed. The eight qualifiers are the most ever under head coach Keith Gavin. 

The tournament began on Thursday and the final will take place on Saturday at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.  

Track and field   

The Pitt track and field team is set to begin its outdoor event season at the USF Alumni Invitational taking place on Friday and Saturday in Tampa, Florida.  

The first event on Friday features first year Samuell Guzman competing in men’s javelin at 10 a.m. Later in the evening, junior Jana Bruses, first-year Hailey Kravetz, senior Logan Neely and senior Mackenzie Sullivan will all compete in the women’s 400-meter hurdle final at 5 p.m. Lastly, at 11 a.m. Saturday morning, Taylor Forbes will compete in the women’s triple jump.   

Baseball  

Pitt baseball faces its second ACC opponent of the season this weekend at home with a three-game series against NC State from Friday to Sunday.  

The Panthers struggled in their first outing against an ACC opponent where they came away with two losses and one win in their series against Georgia Tech last weekend.  

Softball

Pitt softball has the opportunity to revitalize the season after six consecutive losses to ACC opponents North Carolina and No. 10 ranked Florida State.  

The Panthers play ACC opponent Georgia Tech for a triple header starting on Friday and going through Sunday.  

Gymnastics 

Pitt women’s gymnastics are ranked No. 6 in the ACC gymnastics championship as they compete against No. 5 overall Clemson in the first session.  

The Panthers hope to continue their success after winning two out of three competitions last meet. They defeated Kent State and West Virginia and suffered a loss to Ohio State.  

Lacrosse 

Pitt lacrosse will try to bounce back against No. 12 ranked Virginia in Charlottesville, Virginia, after a tough loss to No. 8 ranked Syracuse at home last weekend.  

This is the Panthers’ second opportunity at their first ranked win in program history. Pitt and Virginia come into the game with similar records. The Cavaliers sit at 6-3 while the Panthers can improve to 6-4 with a win.  

Women’s soccer 

Pitt women’s soccer has a chance to dominate in its second home scrimmage of the spring season against Saint Francis University.  

Coming off a 2024 campaign that saw the Panthers finish with a 9-6-3 record and the loss of five of their top six goal scorers, there are a lot of positives for the program, especially after hiring Pittsburgh native Brianna Alleyne to the coaching staff. 

Men’s soccer 

Pitt men’s soccer takes on conference foe Duke at home for its second preseason game this spring.  

Pitt had an exciting but ultimately disappointing season in 2024, reaching the national quarterfinals for the fourth time in five years but failing to win the elusive first-ever National Championship in program history.