Weekend Recap: Wrestling team clinches ACC Championship in weekend action

A weekend filled with action was highlighted by Pitt’s wrestling team claiming an outright conference championship while the baseball and softball teams each picked up a pair of wins in the South.

Wrestling 

The No. 10 Panthers took advantage of their opportunity to clinch the ACC championship, besting North Carolina 22-12. Pitt finished undefeated in conference matches, going 6-0 and upping its record to 13-3.

Senior heavyweight P.J. Tasser capped off the meet with a 8-1 win over Bob Coe to bring the final score to 22-12.

Baseball

The Panthers repeated the pattern of success from their first weekend of action by winning their first two games, but dropping the final game of the weekend at the USC-Upstate Tournament in Myrtle Beach, S.C. An offensive outburst led Pitt (4-2) to a 15-7 victory against Butler on Friday.

“I was very pleased to see 21 hits on the board,” head coach Joe Jordano said. “We did a very nice job at the plate against a quality starter in Eric Stout. Butler can swing the bats as well, and they are also very good against the fastball. After a shaky start, we settled in and did a solid job the rest of the way.”

Against USC-Upstate the next day, it was the pitching that led the way, as Rhys Aldenhoven picked up the win after allowing just two earned runs in six innings of work. Hobie Harris earned his first save of the season by closing the door on a 5-3 Pitt win.

The Panthers weren’t as fortunate Sunday in a 9-2 loss to the Fordham Rams. Pitt allowed six unearned runs in the loss because of a lackluster defensive play. 

Softball

In Boca Raton, Fla., for the weekend, Pitt won two games and dropped two others.

The Panthers split their matches Friday, defeating Kent State 1-0, but fell to Michigan 9-0. Junior pitcher Savannah King led Pitt against Kent State, tossing her first shutout of the season.

On Saturday, Pitt defeated Penn State 3-1. The Panthers recorded nine hits, with Freshman Kaitlin Manuel and junior Carly Thea each contributing three hits.

Kent State then avenged its loss Friday with a 6-1 victory against the Panthers.

Tennis

In their first taste of ACC play, the Panthers (3-2, 0-2 ACC) dropped a pair of matches on the road at Virginia Tech and Wake Forest for their first losses of the season. The Hokies claimed a dominant 6-1 victory Saturday, while the Demon Deacons earned a 4-3 decision Sunday.

Pitt picked up its lone point in Blacksburg, Va., when junior Amanda Wickman defeated Raluca Mita, 6-3, 2-6 and 6-4 in No. 5 singles. Head coach Alex Santos attributed part of the loss to the team’s slow start.

“In doubles we didn’t start with the best energy,” said Santos. “We got down early on two courts and although we fought back, it ended up being too little, too late, and ultimately the slow start cost us the doubles point.”

The doubles point again went against Pitt’s favor Sunday, as the Panthers split six singles points with the Demon Deacons. But Wake Forest took two of three matches in doubles play to earn the match-deciding point.

“Today we were as good as Wake Forest in singles, but when you lose the doubles point, you have to be better than the other team to be successful,” Santos said. “We played the most important points in certain spots of our lineup extremely well, but we weren’t consistent enough across the board.”

Women’s swimming and diving

Despite setting seven school records, Pitt was unable to make much headway in ACC competition, finishing eighth in a field of 12. Head coach Chuck Knoles, though, was proud of his team’s improvement.

“Any time you walk into a conference as powerful as the ACC and are picked tenth when coming into one of the strongest conferences and move up two spots from that, it really shows the work ethic and tenacity of the ladies,” Knoles said. 

Gymnastics

For the fourth competition in a row, the Panthers finished in second place, scoring 195.050 against North Carolina State. The score was Pitt’s highest mark of the season,

Pitt staged a strong comeback by ending the night with 48.950 team score on the floor, but the Wolfpack ended up with a 195.450 overall. Head coach Debbie Yohman appreciated her team’s comeback despite the loss.

“What a nice comeback,” Yohman said. “Unfortunately, we aren’t perfect yet. We still have to work harder, and that is something to work hard on. We had our season high on three events, so this was a good effort for us.

Women’s basketball

Sunday in Syracuse, N.Y., the Panthers were blown out by 31 points, 67-36, as they shot just 20.4 percent from the field. Ashlee Anderson led Pitt (11-17, 3-11 ACC) with 11 points and six rebounds.