Baseball
Pitt baseball (5-1, ACC 0-0) continued its strong start to the season by securing the series win against Monmouth (3-5, CAA 0-0).
The Panthers dominated in back-to-back wins to open the series. On Friday night, Pitt defeated the Hawks 6-1 in an all-around solid performance. In his second start as a Panther, senior pitcher Patrick Gardner earned his second win.
Gardner threw six electric innings, surrendering just one hit on the day. Redshirt junior outfielder Lorenzo Carrier recorded his third multi-hit game of the season — making an instant impact after transferring from Miami.
On Saturday, Pitt baseball won similarly with a 5-1 score — starting the season on a five-game winning streak. The win clinched their best start to a season in over two decades since they began 10-0-1 in 2002.
This time, junior pitcher Ryan Reed secured the victory. The Pennsylvania native held Monmouth scoreless over seven for his first career win.
The Hawks stole the season finale on Sunday, besting Pitt 7-6. Disastrous defense sunk the Panthers, as they committed four errors leading to three unearned runs. Junior outfielder AJ Nessler led Pittsburgh offensively with a game-high four hits.
Heading into the top of the eighth, the Panthers owned a 6-5 lead. The Hawks tied the game after a sacrifice fly scored an unearned run. Then, in the bottom of the ninth, senior pitcher Ethan Firoved threw a costly wild pitch, allowing Monmouth to score the game-winning runs.
Pitt baseball plays next in their home opener on Tuesday, Feb. 25 as they take on Bucknell.
Softball
Pitt softball (8-7, ACC 0-0) traveled to Orlando to compete in the SpaceU Classic this weekend. The Panthers went a solid 3-2 as they continued their out-of-conference schedule.
Pitt lost their opener 4-2 on Thursday to the host UCF. The Knights scored three runs in the opening frame, a lead the Panthers failed to overcome. After surrendering four runs in the first two innings, first-year pitcher Gwen Sparks locked in, keeping UCF off the board over her last four innings. But Pittsburgh’s bats never broke through, only scoring two runs despite having three multi-hit games.
On Friday, the Panthers split their results. The night began with a 1-0 win over Quinnipiac. Senior pitcher Kyra Pittman, the ace of the staff, pitched her second complete-game shutout of the season. Pittman allowed one hit and struck out a career-high six strikeouts. The lone Panther run came from hometown hero junior outfielder Camryn Murphy’s solo shot in the bottom of the second.
Fueled by a hot start, Columbia defeated Pitt 9-7. Columbia plated an impressive five runs in the first inning. The Panthers clawed back in the bottom of the second, scoring three runs off of redshirt junior infielder Tieley Vaughn’s double, closing the gap to 7-5. Murphy scored off a senior infielder Ana Hernandez single in the fifth.
The Lions, however, held off the rally and added an insurance marker in the seventh for their first win of the season.
On Saturday, Pitt softball ended the SpaceU Classic with a pair of wins. The Panthers first defeated Quinnipiac 2-1. Pitt scored twice off of fielding errors in the top of the first, getting off to an early lead. Sparks earned her second win, going six innings while giving up just one run. Pittman earned the save in a 10-pitch scoreless inning.
Against FGCU, the Panthers won 5-2. Pittman pitched a complete game and retired the first six batters of the game. Once again, Pitt secured an early lead, scoring five in the first three innings. Senior infielder Desirae Martinez had a solid game at the plate with two hits and two RBIs.
Pitt softball hits the road again next weekend to close out non-conference play as the Panthers travel to Long Beach California to play in the Louisville Slugger Invitational.
Lacrosse
Pitt lacrosse lost 11-10 in a hard-fought match against Virginia Tech. After leading much of the match, the Panthers fell just short of the program’s second ACC win.
Sophomore midfielder Kaitlyn Giandonato almost willed Pitt to victory with a career-high five goals. The Hokies took their first lead in the game in the fourth quarter to earn the conference win. Defensively, junior defender Gracie Kahoun led Pitt with three forced turnovers.
Pitt will try again for their second ACC win as they travel to take on Stanford on Thursday, Feb. 27.
Gymnastics
Pitt gymnastics was unsuccessful on its West Coast trip as it fell to Cal 195.125-197.775 and fell to 0-6 in the conference.
However, there is lots to look ahead to after the meet, as many Panthers had career-best days. Pitt recorded a season-high 49.150 on the floor, led by Jordyn Ewing, Jah’Liyah Bedminster and Emily Todd. Ewing led the lineup with a 9.900, tying a season-high. Bedminster also tied a season-high with a 9.875. Todd tied a personal best with another 9.875, and first-year Meika Lee followed with a 9.825.
On Beam, graduate student Elizabeth Cesarone set a career-high 9.850, followed by first-year Darbi Simcox, who also recorded a 9.850.
The Panthers stayed hot on vault as three Panthers recorded 9.800s. Junior Jaime Pratt notched a career-best 9.825 while Kennedy Duke and Bedminster each scored a 9.800.
On bars, Pratt and Todd both had solid days, each scoring a 9.800.
Pitt will hit the road and travel to Kent State this Friday at 7 p.m. and will return to the Fitzgerald Field House next Sunday to take on West Virginia in the Backyard Brawl.
Wrestling
No. 18-ranked Pitt took down Virginia 23-13 in its regular season finale. The Panthers finish the year at 10-6 overall and 3-3 in the ACC. Overall, Pitt won six bouts en route to a dominant win over the Cavaliers.
Redshirt first-year Dylan Evans opened the scoring for Pitt in a tightly-contested 157 lbs match, winning on a late takedown in the third period for a 4-1 victory.
Redshirt junior Luca Augustine got the first bonus-point win for the Panthers, one of three for Pitt on Friday. Augustine won on a technical fall win, giving Pitt an 8-6 lead. The Panthers went on to win the next four bouts.
Graduate student Nick Babin closed the night for the Panthers, winning his 125 lbs match and closing out the regular season on a high note.
Pitt now looks toward the ACC Wrestling Championships, which is hosted by Duke on March 9. The Panthers hope to qualify for the NCAA Championships at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia.
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