Pittsburgh vs. Cincinnati

CINCINNATI, Ohio, November 15. FRESHMAN Megan Bender earned three first-place finishes and was named one of the Pitt Performers of the Meet, as the women's swimming and diving team recorded a 182.5-117.5 victory over Cincinnati, on Saturday. Sophomore Sophie Cross was also named a Performer of the Meet, while the Panthers improved to 2-1 on the year and 1-1 in the Big East.

Bender (Allen Park, Mich./Allen Park) won the 100 back, 200 back and the 200 IM to lead the Panthers. First, the Panthers swept the 100 back, as Bender won the race with a time of 57.76. Juniors Ryann Kishbaugh (Danville, Pa./Danville Area) and Allie Horvath (Oxford, Ohio/Badin) claimed second and third. Later, Bender won the 200 back at 2:03.75, while Kishbaugh and Horvath placed second and fourth, respectively.

In her third first-place finish, Bender touched the wall at 2:09.84 in the 200 IM. Cross (Thornton, Pa./Glenn Mills) tallied a second-place finish in that same event.

Sophomore Katherine Cutrell (Ligonier, Pa./Glen Mills) was another multi-event winner, claiming three first-place performances. First, she won the 1000 free nearly 18 seconds faster than the second-place finisher. She then earned another top finish in the next race, when she touched the wall at 1:53.06 in the 200 free. Finally, Cutrell turned in a first-place finish in the 500 free, which was seven seconds ahead of the pack.

Pitt would later earn another sweep in the 100 fly, as sophomore Kristin McMullan (West Chester, Pa./West Chester Henderson) won the race at 58.26. Sophomore Caitlin Trant (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Hills) then took second and freshman Tamara Lelli (Scottsdale, Ariz./Chaparral) was third. McMullan also placed second in the 50 free.

Sophomore Cookie McIntyre (York, Pa./West York Area) won the 200 fly, while Cross finished second at 2:07.62. McIntyre also claimed the third-place performance in the 200 back.

Sophomore Laura Barnes (Pickering, Ont./Dunbarton) earned the top finish in the 200 breast (2:21.54), while taking second in the 100 breast.

Winning the 1M diving event, junior Margo Ekstrom (Erie, Pa./McDowell) scored 277.27 points. Additionally, senior Sabrina Jennings (Elmont, N.Y./Elmont Memorial), junior Alyssa Ferraro (Ridgewood, N.J./Ridgewood) and sophomore Morgan Speece (Reading, Pa./Wilson) placed third through fifth, respectively. Ferraro would place second on the 3M board, while Ekstrom was third.

Placing in the top three in several events, junior Lisa McDonnell (Columbia, Pa./Hempfield) took second in the 200 free (1:53.31), edging out the Bearcat that finished third at 1:53.54. She was also second in the 100 free and third in the 500 free.

Pitt returns to action in the three-day Hoosierland Invitational that begins on Friday, Nov. 21., in Bloomington, Ind.

Special thanks to Pittsburgh for contributing this report.

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