University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Pitt
West Virginia
Pitt Swim and Dive Shines in Sweep over West Virginia
1/10/2026 3:51:00 PM | Swimming & Diving
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. - The Pitt swimming and diving teams delivered a strong all-around performance Saturday afternoon, earning a road sweep over West Virginia at the Mylan Park Aquatic Center. The No.24 Panther women posted a 206-93 victory, while the men followed with a 180-119 win. With the results, Pitt secured its fifth straight victory over the Mountaineers.
The Panthers set the tone early, capturing both 200-yard medley relays. On the women's side, the Pitt "A" relay of Mary Clarke, Jessica Strong, Avery Kudlac and Claire Jansen touched first in 1:40.88. The men followed with a victory from Mason Leach, Eli Hobson, Julian Koch and Ryan Nordheim in 1:26.83.
Pitt continued to control the meet in the distance events, as Emily Bucaro claimed the women's 1,000 freestyle with a time of 9:57.50. Jansen added an individual victory in the women's 200 freestyle, winning in 1:47.83. On the men's side, Alan Vergine paced a 1-2 finish in the 200 free with a winning time of 1:35.54, followed by James Allison in second at 1:37.05.
In the diving portion, the Panthers earned first-place finishes in all four events, including a top five sweep in the women's 3-meter, led by Rachel Dickerson with 326.33 points. On the men's side, Noah Bernard captured both the 1-meter and 3-meter titles, scoring 344.93 and 398.18, respectively. Mariana Osorio Mendoza added a win in the women's 1-meter with a score of 304.20. Dickerson added a personal best on the 3-meter with a score of 326.33. Megan Iannon added a personal high on the day with a 319.65 on the 3-meter. Ayla Debowsky added a pair of personal bests with a 288.38 on the 3-meter and 296.25 on the 1-meter. Cassie Guerrera rounded out the personal bests with scores of 272.40 on the 1-meter and 286.35 on the 3-meter. With the results, all Pitt divers have now qualified for NCAA zones.
The Panthers were dominant in the backstroke events, led by Kudlac's win in the women's 100 back (53.42) and Leach's first-place finish in the men's 100 back (48.11). Pitt also swept the top two spots in the women's event, with Parker Del Balso finishing second in 54.09.
Angelina Messina delivered a victory in the women's 100 breaststroke, touching in 1:02.08, while Hobson secured the men's 100 breaststroke title with a time of 54.07. Koch added another first-place finish for Pitt in the men's 200 butterfly, winning in 1:44.79, followed by Vergine in second at 1:45.95.
Sprint events also favored the Panthers, as Sof Tijunelis and Avery Hafele finished first and second in the women's 50 freestyle with times of 23.23 and 23.24, respectively. Nordheim topped the men's 50 free with a time of 20.52.
Jansen recorded her second individual victory of the meet in the women's 100 freestyle with a time of 50.00. The Pitt men followed with a 1-2 finish, led by Allison in 44.22 and Nordheim in 44.88.
Del Balso claimed the top spot in the women's 200 back with a time of 1:57.22, while Messina added another win in the women's 200 breast at 2:15.25. The Panthers continued their momentum in the women's 500 freestyle with a 1-2 finish from Clarke and Bucaro, posting times of 4:54.89 and 4:56.34. The men matched the effort, as Vergine and Cy Zhang finished first and second with times of 4:29.07 and 4:32.69, respectively.
Kudlac and Koch captured victories in the 100 butterfly events, with Kudlac winning in 53.43 and Koch touching in 46.97. After the final break, Pitt swept the final four events, highlighted by Kimmy Shannon's win in the women's 200 individual medley at 1:59.88, with Messina finishing second in 2:05.11. On the men's side, Alex Bauer secured a victory in the 200 IM with a time of 1:49.50.
Pitt closed the meet with victories in both 400 freestyle relays. The women's "A" relay of Clarke, Jansen, Tijunelis and Kudlac finished first in 3:20.06, while the men's A" relay of Vergine, Allison, Nordheim and Koch claimed the win in 2:55.31.
Up Next
The Panthers return home Saturday, Jan. 23, to host Villanova at Trees Pool for Senior Day. Pitt will honor its 19 seniors at 4:05 p.m., with competition beginning at 4:30 p.m.
Players Mentioned
