The Pitt swimming and diving team dropped two meets this past weekend to perennial powerhouse… The Pitt swimming and diving team dropped two meets this past weekend to perennial powerhouse programs Virginia Tech and Virginia. But despite the losses, the Panthers are staying positive because they know that while these meets are still important, their ultimate destination ‘mdash; the Big East Championship in February ‘mdash; is what they need to worry about the most. At this point in the season, Pitt is undergoing rigorous training for the league championship ‘ and may not always be at peak physical condition for the meets. ‘These meets are about seeing what you can do in less than ideal conditions,’ said sophomore swimmer Alex McLaren. ‘The races at this point won’t be as fast as the Big East times.’ Still, Pitt is competing. During the meet on Saturday against Virginia Tech, the Panthers received several strong efforts but lost 177.5-118.5. Sophomore Laura Barnes and freshman Tamara Lelli were the standouts of the day for the Panthers. Barnes won the 100-meter and 200-meter breast stroke with times of 1:05.69 and 2:20.81, respectively. Lelli held her own in the fly events as well, finishing second in the 100-meter and third in the 200-meter. On Sunday, the Panthers lost 142-96 to Virginia. During that meet, sophomore diver Collin Forner won the 1M board event and finished fourth in the 3M board. Another standout on the 3M board was sophomore Zane McLain, who finished second. The Panthers’ next meet is Saturday at 8:30 a.m. against local schools Carnegie Mellon, Clarion and Slippery Rock. Besides the events in the pool, the weekend also marked a couple of important other events for the team. The meet on Saturday was youth day, where local grade school children came to meet their pen-pals on the team whom they have been chatting back and forth with all season. ‘Every year some of the members of the team have pen-pals in elementary school, and Saturday was the meet when we finally got to meet each other,’ said McLaren. ‘It’s always a big thrill for the kids.’ Sunday was the Swim for the Cure meet, an event in which people are encouraged to come wearing pink to help in the fight against breast cancer.