Press release courtesy of the University of Pittsburgh.
CHARLOTESVILLE, Va. – The University of Pittsburgh men’s and women’ swimming and diving teams head south this Saturday to face ACC counterpart Virginia at 9:30 a.m. at the Aquatic and Fitness Center.
This matchup with the Cavaliers marks the final dual meet of the season as the Panthers begin to prepare for the ACC championships on Feb. 19-22.
“The group we will be traveling to Virginia with is the same group that will be competing at the ACC Championships,” Head Coach Chuck Knoles said. “We are still moving some people around into different events, but first we need to see how our swimmers and divers will stack up against ACC competition heading into championships.”
This won’t be the first time Pitt has faced UVA and the Panthers will look to seek some revenge this weekend as Virginia narrowly won last year’s meet at Trees Pool.
“We’ve competed against Virginia for about 20 years. This is a regular dual meet for us and we are used to competing at their facility. It will be a great opportunity to swim fast against an ACC team before the championships.”
Leading the charge for the Panthers will be junior Jon Lierley who took home four first-place finishes and a second-place finish in last week’s Western Pennsylvania Invitational. Lierley swept both the 100 and 200 butterfly and breaststroke along with swimming a leg of the 200 medley relay where his team placed second.
For the lady swimmers, Tatyanna Sarjeant looks to also continue her success from last weekend’s Invitational where she took first in the 1,000 freestyle and third in the 200 butterfly. Sophomore Kaleigh Ritter, who too was victorious last weekend in the 200 freestyle, will look to improve her time as she prepares for the ACC championships.
On the boards for the Panthers this weekend, freshman sensations Tony Galante and Rachel Saunders look to provide stiff competition for the hosting Cavaliers.Galante, from Cary, N.C., took home a victory in the 3M dive and a third-place finish in the 1M dive against Denison and James Madison three weeks ago. In last week’s Invitational, Saunders finished with a first-place in the 1M dive (278.20) and a third-place result in the 3M dive.
Fans can follow live results during the meet by clicking here.
