While most Pitt students had a break from classes to vacation or travel home, some student-athletes stayed on campus to continue competition. As winter sports wrap up the season, the Panthers’ spring sports are in full swing with matchups home and away.
Men’s basketball
Pitt men’s basketball (17-14, ACC 8-12) wrapped up the regular season with three games over the break. The Panthers dropped road contests with No. 19 Louisville and NC State, amounting to a four-game losing streak.
They turned things around on senior night, celebrating this season’s final game at the Petersen Events Center with a dominant 93-67 victory over Boston College. Four Panthers hit double figures, and senior guard Ishmael Leggett sank 14 points and eight rebounds in his final home game.
After securing the No. 13 seed, Pitt will compete at the ACC Championship in Charlotte, taking on No. 12 Notre Dame at 2 p.m. on Tuesday.
Women’s basketball
Pitt women’s basketball (13-19, ACC 5-13) finished its regular season with a 79-63 victory over Wake Forest. Graduate student center Khadija Faye tallied a season-high 31 points and nine rebounds in the victory, as well as six blocks to dominate on both ends of the floor.
With the win, the Panthers slid into the No. 15 seed of the ACC tournament, where they matched up with No. 10 Virginia. The season ultimately came to an end, though, with a 64-50 loss to the Cavaliers in the first round. Once again, Faye led the Panthers with 15 points and 11 rebounds, recording her 17th double-double of the season.
Baseball
The Panthers (9-5, ACC 0-0) spent spring break on the road, starting with a series win at UNC Greensboro. Pitt took an 8-4 victory on Friday night, with eight of the nine starters collecting a hit while combining to allow just four hits from the opposing Spartans. The Panthers secured the series on Saturday with a 4-3 win behind 12 strikeouts from left-handed junior Ryan Reed but dropped the final game on Sunday in an 11-13 loss.
In a midweek matchup, Pitt headed west to face UNC Asheville, taking an 8-1 victory over the Bulldogs after a five-run eighth inning broke the game open.
The Panthers finished the break with a three-game series at East Tennessee State, dropping two matchups with the Buccaneers and taking their first series loss of the year. They secured a 7-4 win on Friday in a tight 12-inning matchup after a late three-run homer from sophomore third baseman Ryan Zuckerman, but Pitt dropped the second game in an 8-4 loss.
In the final game of the series, Pitt held a 5-3 lead entering the bottom of the ninth inning but allowed three runs to cross the plate and lost 6-5. The Panthers return home this week and look to return to the win column in a matchup with Youngstown State on Wednesday at 3 p.m.
Softball
Pitt softball (10-13, ACC 0-3) opened spring break at the Louisville Slugger Invitational in Long Beach, California, losing three games but taking victories over Cal Poly and Long Beach State. On Friday, first-year pitcher Gwen Sparks secured her first career shutout against Cal Poly, pitching seven innings to allow one hit and striking out seven in the 4-0 win. Senior pitcher Kendall Brown started the game Sunday, throwing three shutout innings and contributing to Pitt’s 3-2 victory over Long Beach State. Fellow senior Kyra Pittman finished the game by allowing just four hits and striking out one.
The following weekend, Pitt headed to Chapel Hill for a three-game series at North Carolina. The Panthers couldn’t secure a win in their first ACC matchup. The Panthers opened the weekend with a 3-1 loss after an error led to a three-run third inning to put the Tar Heels on top. A strong outing from North Carolina redshirt senior Britton Rogers held the Panthers to just three hits in the second game, where they fell in a 9-2 loss. The Tar Heels completed the sweep on Sunday afternoon with an 8-4 victory. Pitt looks to secure its first conference win next weekend, heading to Florida State for a three-game series set to kick off on Friday at 6 p.m.
Lacrosse
Pitt women’s lacrosse (4-3, ACC 1-2) hosted Niagara on Tuesday afternoon, dominating the Purple Eagles in a 23-3 victory. Senior attacker Jenna Hendrickson led the way with four goals and an assist. Hendrickson was one of 12 Panthers to find the back of the net. The Panthers’ 23 goals set a program single-game record.
The team returned to Highmark Stadium over the weekend, beating conference newcomer California 7-6. The ACC win is Pitt’s first of the season, as well as the program’s first conference win since 2022. The resilient Panther team came back from a 5-1 halftime deficit with two second-half goals from senior midfielder Jill Fenech helping secure the win. They look to extend their win streak on Wednesday when they host Liberty at 4 p.m.
Track and field
Over break, the Panthers traveled to Louisville for this year’s ACC Indoor Championship. Pitt senior Je’Nyia Burton secured gold in the women’s 400-meter race, recording a time of 51.82 to set both the school and facility record.
Burton also took home fifth place in the 200-meter race at 23.39 seconds and helped the women’s 4×400 relay secure sixth place with a time of 3:36.48 to earn second-team All-ACC honors.
Senior Nigel Hussey earned a bronze medal for his 60-meter race, recording 6.66 seconds. He finished fourth in the 200-meter race with a time of 20.85, both personal bests, to earn first-team All-ACC honors. Burton and Hussey were honored as PNC Achievers of the Week for their efforts in the meet.
The women’s team finished the weekend with 46 points to secure eighth place, a program best, while the men’s team finished in 13th with 21 points. Pitt finishes its indoor season next weekend at the NCAA Indoor Championship in Virginia Beach.
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