Swimming and living protects No. 23 ranking

While the men’s basketball team cracked the top 10 in the national polls this week, another… While the men’s basketball team cracked the top 10 in the national polls this week, another Pitt squad was garnering some national recognition just a little further up Cardiac Hill.

It has been a little more than a full year since the men’s swimming and diving squad has been nationally ranked, but that changed when the College Swim Coaches Association (CSCAA) announced its poll last Thursday and the Panthers found themselves in the 23rd slot.

Pitt used that confidence booster to blow out Maryland and Villanova when they hosted the two schools in a tri-meet this weekend at Trees Pool. The No. 23 Panthers combined to defeat the Terrapins and Wildcats by a score of 514-190 in the two-day meet.

Their win over Big East opponent Villanova (240-113) extended their conference record to 3-1, while their non-conference victory over Maryland (274-77) pushed their overall record to 6-1.

The Panthers set the tone early by opening the meet with a sweep of the 1M dives. Sophomore Jeremy Stultz took first with a score of 359.8, while freshman Alex Volovetski finished with a 338.3 and senior Adam Natishyn claimed third with a 266.4.

Pitt once again swept up the competition in the 200-freestyle event. Jason Miller, Darryl Washington and Nathan McCutcheon claimed the top three spots to keep the Panthers rolling.

The sweeps kept coming in the 200-fly event. Chris Howard won with a time of 1:56.04, and his teammates Andy Kyrejko and Chris George weren’t too far behind with times of 1:56.15 and 1:56.78, respectively. What made these close scores even more exciting for Pitt was that the nearest competitor finished a full second behind the top three Panthers.

Another key event for the Panthers was the 500 freestyle. Sophomore Chris George and McCutcheon battled to the finish and were separated by only .55 seconds to claim first and second, respectively.

Relay swimmers helped the Panthers seal the victory for the weekend as the 400-medley relay team of Thomas Bird, Warren Barnes, Miller and Patrick Mansfield swam to a five-second victory. The 400-free relay team of Miller, Bird, Washington and Mansfield swam to a three-second victory to close the meet.

The women’s side of the meet wasn’t as decisive but produced the same result for Pitt.

The Panthers defeated Villanova by the same score as the men, while the meet with Maryland was closer (209-141). The win over the Terps was Pitt’s first in the series in more than a decade.

While the entire squad put together a solid meet to claim the two victories, two juniors paced the Panthers in multiple events during the weekend.

Kristin Brown earned three first-place finishes on Sunday and claimed two on Saturday. Brown led all swimmers in anything having to do with the freestyle stroke. She won the 100-free event on Saturday before she teamed up with Kelly Redcay, Stacie Safritt and Jordan Wallace to win the 200-free relay on Saturday. On Sunday, Brown won the 500 free, 200 free and anchored Pitt’s 400-free relay team.

Andrea Shoust took first in the 200-backstroke while also swimming the first leg for the 400-medley relay team that finished second.

The two wins helped the women’s team keep pace with the 23rd-ranked men in the wins and losses columns. They are also 3-1 in the Big East and 6-1 overall.

Both squads will be back in the pool when they play host to the Cincinnati Bearcats in the aquatic version of the River City Rivalry Saturday at 11 a.m. Though a battle for rights to the Ohio River, this one will be settled in Trees Pool.