Swimming and diving defeats rival West Virginia

Competing against Big East rival West Virginia, the No. 17 men’s swimming and diving… Competing against Big East rival West Virginia, the No. 17 men’s swimming and diving team, along with the women’s team, dominated the meet, defeating the Mountaineers 167.5-75.5. In victory, the men’s team shattered the WVU pool record for the 400-meter medley relay.

Pitt Men 167.5 WVU 75.5

With this win, Pitt remained undefeated in Big East competition and improved its overall record to 5-1. The 400-meter medley relay was a sign of things to come for the Panthers as Eric Bugby, Steve Marcucio, Jason Miller and Stephen Kilroy clocked in at 3:25.84. The relay team broke the pool’s record, which the Panthers set in 2002.

Pitt continued to control the meet with a 1-2-3 finish in the 1000 freestyle. The Panthers barely claimed first place in the 200-meter freestyle as Eric Limkemann clocked in only one-hundredth of a second before his closest competitor.

WVU rallied to win the 50-meter freestyle, but Pitt regained the top spot as Ken Shelhorse and Marcucio combined for a 1-2 finish in the 200-meter IM. Miller then blew away the competition in the 200-meter butterfly, topping the other swimmers by 5.5.

The Mountaineers were able to remain competitive in the 100-meter freestyle as their swimmer tied the Panthers’ Tommy Bird with a time of 47.14 seconds. Pitt came back with a 1-2-3 finish in the 200-meter backstroke led by Jeff Leath.

Panther diving added 32 points to the Pitt victory with the top three scores on the 1- and 3-meter boards.

Pitt is back in action at Trees Pool on Jan. 16-17 with a meet against Maryland, Notre Dame and Villanova.

Pitt Women 164, WVU 72

The women’s swimming and diving team (5-1, 2-1 in the Big East) joined the men’s team in defeat of WVU with a score of 164-72.

Pitt defeated the Mountaineers in 11 of 13 events, dominating in relays. The 400-meter medley relay proved again to be a strong event for Pitt as Andrea Shoust, Avy Mitchell, Amy Miteff and Kristin Brown combined to claim first place by finishing more than two seconds ahead of the other relay teams.

Carolyne Savini competed in the 1000-meter freestyle for the first time in three years and won with a time of 10:33.42. Savini’s win was followed by a victory from Jenny Livingstone in the 200-meter freestyle giving the Panthers a three event-advantage.

WVU didn’t give up and placed 1-2 in the 50-meter freestyle, but the win was countered by Panther efforts as they finished 1-2-3 in the 200-meter IM.

The 100-meter freestyle ended in a 1-2 finish by Pitt’s Ryan Redman and Kelly Redcay. Then the 200-meter backstroke, 500-meter freestyle, 200-meter butterfly, 200-meter breaststroke and 200-meter free relay were all won by the Panthers. These wins aided in the accumulation of Pitt’s lead of 164 total points.

Diver Colleen Kristobak contributed a first-place finish on the 1-meter board.

The women’s team will take on both Maryland and Villanova Jan. 16-17 at Trees Pool.