The far wall at Trees Pool is covered with Big East championship banners from the men’s… The far wall at Trees Pool is covered with Big East championship banners from the men’s swimming and diving programs.

Both programs are making it clear that they want to fill that wall and start in on another.

With the conference championships just a month away, the Panthers went into College Park, Md., last weekend and showed the swimming and diving world that they are a force to be reckoned with. The women defeated North Carolina State and Villanova, while the men swept all three opponents at the quadruple meet.

The women’s team improved to 7-3 overall, and their blowout victory over Villanova moved them to 3-1 in Big East competition. Their only loss in the meet came against Maryland, the No. 12 team in the nation.

Several winners led the way for the Panthers. In the 200-yard butterfly, Amy Miteff finished in first place. Andrea Shoust captured the 200 backstroke, setting a personal best in the event for the second time in three meets. Lindsey Tiberio continued her sensational breaststroke season, winning the 100.

The real story for the Panthers at this meet was not only in the wins, however. Several Panther swimmers knocked seconds off of their top times, swam personal bests and challenged school and season records. Head coach Chuck Knoles attributed much of the success to the incredible work ethic the Panthers have displayed since their trip to Fort Lauderdale over Winter break.

“Both teams are starting to understand that paying the price in practice benefits during meets,” Knoles said last week.

This understanding has manifested itself into solid performances, the most vivid coming in the grueling 1650 freestyle. Kathy Siuda took 13 seconds off of her season-best mark, while Kate Butrie knocked off 30 seconds from her top time this season, leaving Knoles ecstatic.

“[These season and personal bests are] the kind of thing we want to see salt-and-peppered throughout the championship season,” he said.

The men’s squad rode a successful first day to victory, improving to 7-3 on the season and 3-1 in the Big East. They have taken four straight decisions since their Jan. 4 loss at Princeton.

The Pitt diving team continued to give opposing coaches fodder for their nightmares. Dennis Nemtsanov and Jeremy Stultz finished first and second in both events. The Panthers also earned the top six spots in the 3-meter event and the top five in the 1-meter. The men’s diving team has had the first-place finisher in each event in which they have competed at every meet this season.

Jason Miller set the pace for the Panthers in swimming events. He swept the butterfly events — winning the 100 and 200 — notched a win in the 200 individual medley and was on the winning team in the 400 freestyle relay.

Chris George added his name to the list of winners as well, winning the 500 and 1650 freestyles. The distance phenom’s win in the 1650 was a blowout, with nearly nine seconds separating him from his nearest competitor. Fellow freshman Warren Barnes added a sweep of his own, taking the 100 and 200 breaststrokes.

The determination of the men’s squad was tested near the meet’s close, as Maryland had pulled within about 25 points with four events left. At that point, Knoles took his swimmers aside.

“I told them they were going to have to step up,” he explained. “And they did.”

They did, indeed. First came Barnes’ victory in the 200 breast stroke. Then Miller captured the 100 butterfly. George’s freestyle victory in the 500 made it three in a row for the Panthers. And to cap the run, Miller teamed with Eric Bugby, Tommy Bird, and Darryl Washington to swim a season-best time in the 400 freestyle relay to seal the victory.

Pitt now has a weekend off before getting back to work against Virginia Tech this Saturday. The meet will be held at Trees Pool, with diving beginning at 11 a.m.