Panthers pick up two wins in gymnastics home opener

Diandra O’Connor did not need to say anything to describe the way she felt after Pitt… Diandra O’Connor did not need to say anything to describe the way she felt after Pitt gymnastics’ home opener last Friday.

The smile that stretched across her face said it all for her.

O’Connor, a senior all-arounder for the Panthers, recorded her 1,000th career point and won the all-around with 39.15 points to help Pitt (194.3 points) defeat North Carolina State (193.85) and James Madison (185.45).

Pitt improved to 3-1 overall with the wins and 2-0 in the East Atlantic Gymnastics League, and O’Connor became the 14th gymnast in school history to reach the 1,000th point plateau.

“I’m excited,” O’Connor said about her milestone and about how close the final score was. “At the end, we didn’t know the outcome, but we knew it was going to be close.”

Going into the floor routines, Pitt trailed North Carolina State 145.475-145.2. But the Panthers pulled through, scoring 49.1 total points on the floor, led by seniors Alyse Zeffiro (9.9) and Erika Goldberg (9.85). O’Connor and sophomore Roslyn Singleton both received scores of 9.8 for their floor routines.

Zeffiro’s score was good enough to tie for fourth best in school history in the event, and it marked the fifth time in her career that she has recorded a score of 9.9 or higher.

“We made improvements this week,” said Pitt head coach Debbie Yohman. “Last week, it was the first meet, and there were a lot of mistakes. We did well, though, and that’s the best part. The beam hurt us [today], but, obviously, we did good. We had to depend upon other events to win.”

Also helping the Panthers was freshman Andrea Arlotta’s performance on the vault. Arlotta, competing in just her second collegiate meet, recorded a 9.825, tying the fifth-highest score in Pitt history in the vault despite missing most of practice this past week with an injury.

“I was nervous, but just before, it became more excitement than nervousness,” said Arlotta, who has been battling tendonitis in her right Achilles. “The vault is my most consistent event. It’s just a matter of doing it.”

O’Connor and junior Lelia Tait led Pitt on the uneven bars, recording scores of 9.8 each. Goldberg had the high score on the beam for the Panthers with a 9.875 and O’Connor received another 9.8 on the beam, giving her three scores of 9.8 on the night.

“Last week was very motivating, and this week, we improved on that,” coach Yohman said.

With two wins over conference opponents, the Panthers have a good idea of what it will take to compete in the EAGL this season.

“It helps our confidence 100-fold,” Yohman said. “I think – our program – it’s struggled, but it has gotten better.”

Pitt will travel to Morgantown, W. Va., on Friday to compete against EAGL rival West Virginia and Denver.