Pitt Set for Wednesday Matchup with Miami (OH)

Pitt Panthers (8-21, 0-9 ACC)
vs. Miami (OH) (22-6, 6-0 MAC)
March 27, 2024
Vartabedian Field | Pittsburgh, Pa.

QUICK HITS: Pitt will play Miami (OH) in a midweek matchup at Vartabedian Field, Wednesday, March 27, at 4 p.m. The Panthers and Redhawks face off for just the second time in program history with the first meeting coming at the FAU Miken Invitational to open the 2007 season. The Panthers hold a 8-12 record in non-conference games this season.

LAST TIME OUT: The Panthers and Redhawks met on Feb. 11, 2007, at the FAU Miken Invitational. The two teams traded runs in the eighth inning, but Pitt fell 5-4 in nine innings. Pitt recorded four runs on seven hits with one error.

BY THE NUMBERS:

Junior catcher KK Esparza leads the ACC and ranks tied for eighth in the NCAA with 10 caught stealings. Esparza has caught 10 runners on 25 stolen base attempts. Esparza leads the team and ranks 17th in conference batting average among ACC players, batting .438 (7-for-16) with two home runs in nine conference games.
Kat Rodriguez leads the Panthers in batting average (.349), OPS (.933), runs scored (15), hits (29), and on-base percentage (.415). Rodriguez finished the FGCU Classic batting .500 (8-for-16) with a double, a triple, and two home runs in five games. Rodriguez also recorded three multi-hit efforts, including two three-hit games, in that span.
Kylie Griggs missed two games against Florida State after being hit by a pitch in her foot in the series opener. Griggs has recorded a hit in six of the last eight games, including hitting a home run in four of those contests. Griggs became the 20th Panther to hit a grand slam when she launched a home run to left field in the top of the sixth inning, making it a one-run game against No. 12 Virginia Tech.
The Panthers' bats came alive in the final game against No. 18 Florida State as Pitt hit four home runs with KK Esparza (2-for-3) and Ana Hernandez (2-for-3) leading the Pitt offense.

APPROACHING THE 700 WIN MARK: Director of Athletics Heather Lyke announced NFCA Hall of Famer Jenny Allard as the fourth head coach in Pitt softball history in June 2023. Coach Allard is four wins shy of reaching the 700-career victory milestone and is currently ranks 42 among active Division I softball coaches in career wins.

AGAINST TOP OPPONENTS: The Panthers hold a 13-87 all-time record against top 25 opponents. The Panthers played four opponents ranked in the top 15 of the ESPN.com/USA Softball poll in the first six weeks of the season. Pitt played No. 12 LSU (Feb. 10-11), No. 4 Washington (Feb. 23), No. 8 Oklahoma State (Feb. 24), and No. 12 Virginia Tech (March 15-17).