Pitt
Notre Dame, Va. Tech
Women Best Irish as Pitt Concludes Weekend Dual Meet
11/7/2015 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. - The Pitt women's swimming and diving team edged Notre Dame as the men's and women's dual meet with the Irish and host Virginia Tech concluded on Saturday at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center.
"It was a significant win for our women over Notre Dame," said head coach Chuck Knoles. "It was the definition of a team effort, earning points from sprint, middle distance, distance, and diving. I was impressed. Our men hung tough and I know they're focused on closing that margin as we move through the year. Virginia Tech and Notre Dame are very good teams right now."
The women defeated Notre Dame, 188-182, while the men fell, 214-150. Both squads came up short to the Hokies, 254-116 on the men's side and 224-146 for the women. Sophomores Emily Murphy and Meme Sharp were chosen by the team as the women's top performers, while senior David Sweeney and junior Dominic Giordano were selected by the men.
Murphy continued her strong showing on the weekend, taking a victory in the 50 free (23.42) to give her two individual wins in the meet. Murphy, senior Leticia Lelli, junior Melissa Pocsai, and freshman Rachel Brown claimed the 400 free relay for Pitt as well.
Sweeney also grabbed a top spot for the Panthers, taking first in the 200 free (1:40.17).
A number of other swimmers finished near the top of their respective events to contribute to the cause. Freshman Amanda Richey maintained her strong performance this year in distance events, placing second in the 500 free (4:54.63). Junior Spencer Gray took the same spot in the men's event (4:57.70).
Other runner-ups included freshman Hannah Wittman in the 200 IM (2:05.75) and junior Kinga Cichowska in the 200 breast (2:17.35). Sophomore Katie Fernander finished just behind Cichowska with a time of 2:18.94.
Among the divers, Junior Dominic Giordano won the 3M for the fourth time in as many tries this year with a top score of 365.45. Sophomore Meme Sharp placed second in the 1M (294.85).
"We raced tough and dived well this weekend," said Knoles. "Now we must carry that momentum and resolve into the Pitt Invite and the Big Al meet at Princeton prior to the semester break."
The teams will return to action later this month when the Panthers host the Pitt Invitational Nov. 21-23 at Trees Pool.
Players Mentioned
