Buffalo vs. Pittsburgh

PITTSBURGH, Pennsylvania, October 15. PITT'S men's swimming and diving team dropped a heartbreaker to Buffalo, 127-116, in its season opener held at Trees Pool this afternoon. The Panthers slip to 0-1 on the year, while the Bulls improved to 1-0.

Trailing 111-96, Pitt's men's swimming and diving team made it a two-point contest when it earned a sweep in the 200 breast. Freshman Rob Power won the event with a time of 2:06.56. Power jumped out on the rest of the field with a 27.89 split in the first 50, the fasted of the race. Next, junior Benjamin Solari finished second and freshman Pierre-Antoine Meunier was third overall.

However, the Panthers would finish second in the final event of the day – the 400 free relay. Senior Alex Kubicek gave Pitt an early lead with a 22.47 split in the first 50. The race remained close through the next exchange, but Buffalo's sprinters would steadily start to pull away and take the eventual victory in the race and meet. Kubicek was joined by freshmen Sho Sugimoto and Alex Rodenkirk and junior Morne Boshoff.

The anchor in that relay, Boshoff was competing in his first meet as a Panther. Individually, he won the 500 free with a time of 4:41.77. He was also second in the 1,000 free, earlier in the contest.

In the first swimming event of the day, Pitt's 400 medley relay team cruised to a first-place finish, stopping the clock at 3:24.86. That time was nearly three seconds faster than the second-place team. Sophomore Adam Maczewski gave the Panthers an early lead with a 49.67 split in the backstroke. He was joined by junior Benjamin Solari, senior Alex McLaren and junior Jake Van Roekel.

Later, Van Roekel earned an individual first-place finish in the 200 free with a time of 1:42.82. He also made a push in the final lap of 100 free, but placed second in the event with a time of 46.73.
Maczewski would also earn an individual top finish, as he touched first in the 200 back at 1:49.81. He trailed a Buffalo swimmer through the first 150 of the race, but swam a 27.09 in the final lap to outlast the rest of the pack.

In another come-from-behind victory, junior Rousseau Kluever was trailing in the first half of the 200 fly. However, he used a surge at the next turn to take the lead and held on for the win at 1:55.25.

In diving action, senior Zane McLain recorded 321.98 points for a second-place performance on the 1M board. Additionally, classmate Collin Forner would finish second in the 3M event, earning 319.13 points.

Meanwhile, Pitt's women's swimming and diving team opened its 2010-11 season with a 165.5-77.5 victory after winning 10 of 13 points, this afternoon at Trees Pool. The Panthers improved to 1-0 on the season, while the Bulls slipped on 0-1 on the year.

Earning two first-place finishes in her first meet as a Panther, freshman Veronica Lee won the 200 IM and 200 breast. She trailed slightly in the 200 IM after the first turn, but was the lone swimmer to touch the wall in under a minute after the first two strokes. Her final in the IM was a time of 2:05.94. Later, Lee won the 200 breast with a time of 2:20.65.

In the first swimming event of the day, Pitt's 400 medley relay team earned a first-place finish when senior Kristen McMullan touched the wall at 3:52.69. McMullan anchored the relay with a 52.29 split in the freestyle. She was joined by sophomore Joanna Budzis and seniors Laura Barnes and Caitlin Trant on the winning relay.

In an individual event, Budzis won the 200 back by nearly three seconds. She stopped the clock at 2:05.88. Junior Megan Bender was third in that event.

Also in her first meet as a Panther, freshman Julie Harrison recorded the top finish in the 1,000 free with a time of 10:18.60. Harrison trailed early, but took the lead halfway through the race. She was one of three Panthers to finish before one of Buffalo's swimmers touched the wall. Sophomore Kelsey Herbst finished second, while freshman Lauren Matevish was third.

In the very next race, Herbst took second in the 200 free with a finish of 1:55.20. Sophomore Yolandi Van Der Merwe won the event when she out-reached Herbst at the wall with a time of 1:55.04. Herbst would win the 500 free later in the meet. Her time of 5:01.59 was nearly three seconds faster than Harrison, who took second. Senior Katie Cutrell gave Pitt a sweep as she was third in the 500 free.

Later, Pitt swept the 200 fly. Touching the wall first was senior Cookie McIntyre at 2:05.79. Junior Tamara Lelli would place second, while Matevish finished third overall.

Freshman Tori Brungo was another first-place finisher, as she recorded 238.50 points in the 1M diving event. Sophomore Brittany DiSanti took second with a score of 229.73. Next, on the 3M board, senior Morgan Speece edged out the second-place finisher with a score of 238.28. DiSanti was third in that event.

Pitt returns to action tomorrow, Oct. 16, with an 11 a.m. meet against St. Bonaventure. Fans are encouraged to wear pink, as the Panthers Pink the Pool in support of Breast Cancer Awareness Month.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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