Pitt football might be off to its worst start since 2005, but three other Pitt sports have been excelling this fall and placed in their respective polls this week.
Volleyball is No. 8 in the AVCA poll, men’s soccer is No. 11 in the United Soccer Coaches poll and women’s soccer is No. 17 in the Untied Soccer Coaches Poll, for the week of Oct. 9. All three programs have either continued to live up to expectations or exceed them this season, giving fans a great experience at Fitzgerald Field House and Ambrose Urbanic Field throughout their seasons.
Head coach Dan Fisher is in his 11th season and has Pitt volleyball back in discussion as one of the best teams in the country, coming off of three straight Elite Eights and back-to-back Final Fours.
The Panthers are 15-2 overall, 6-0 in the ACC and on a nine-match winning streak, which includes eight sweeps. They also defeated the No. 11 Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in a reverse sweep in five sets last Friday night in front of a sell out crowd at home, putting them on top of the ACC along with Florida State.
Pitt also has home-and-away wins against then ranked No. 15 Kentucky and a sweep on the road of No. 24 Marquette in early September.
They travel to No. 6 Louisville on Friday, who they lost to last season in the Final Four. A win for Pitt would not only likely put them on top of the ACC, but in the running for a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Jay Vidovich is in his eight season in charge of men’s soccer and had a difficult offseason, having to replace eight starters from a College Cup appearance in 2022.
Once again, Vidovich has shown why he is one of the best coaches in the country, as he has assembled another great squad in 2023.
The Panthers are 5-3-3 (W-L-D), in what is one of the hardest schedules in Division I, with strong non-conference opponents and the best soccer conference in the ACC. Their three losses also all come against teams that placed in the top 10 of the latest Untied Soccer Coaches rankings in No. 1 Marshall at Ambrose Urbanic Field and both No. 5 Georgetown and reigning National Champions No. 10 Syracuse on the road.
Pitt has some solid wins this season against then ranked No. 19 Denver on Sept. 25 and No. 9 Wake Forest on Sept. 9, both at home. They are also on a three-match unbeaten streak and came back to defeat Virginia Tech, 3-1 at home last Friday, Oct. 6.
Men’s soccer has four matches left in the regular season, with Virginia on the road this Friday, Duquesne in the City Game next Tuesday, Oct. 17 and then Duke next Saturday, Oct. 21 for Senior Night and ending with No. 8 Notre Dame on the road on Friday, Oct. 27.
Randy Waldrum assembled a talented women’s soccer squad last season that made it to their first ever NCAA Tournament and to the Sweet 16.
The Panthers are back in the polls for the first time in more than a month, but their 11-2-1 overall record and 4-1-1 ACC record says they should have more recognition than they do.
They are unbeaten in their past four games, all at home, which includes back-t0-back victories over then ranked No. 22 Duke last Thursday, Oct. 5 and then ranked No. 17 Wake Forest on Sunday. They are also one of the best scoring teams in the country, averaging 2.8 goals per match, tied for No. 7 in the country and No. 1 in the ACC with Clemson.
Pitt women’s soccer also has four matches before the end of the regular season. They travel to Syracuse on Saturday, No. 1 Florida State next Thursday, Oct. 19 and No. 7 Clemson on Sunday, Oct. 22 and then Virginia Tech at home on Thursday, Oct. 26.
