The fall sports season has been kind to the University of Pittsburgh, with several ranked teams across multiple sports. The domination by some programs has been impressive, but there were a flew slip ups in the past week.

Volleyball

Record: 15-1 (5-1 ACC)

Ranking: No. 1 (AVCA)

Last week: Defeated No. 15 SMU 3-0; Lost to No. 15 SMU 3-2

Schedule

Friday 10/18: Cal 7:00 p.m. (ACCNX)

Sunday 10/20: No. 5 Stanford 3:00 p.m. (ESPN)

There is an old adage in sports where some say it’s tough to beat a team multiple times in a season. If that is indeed the case, then beating the same team twice in four days has to be incredibly difficult. The No. 1 ranked Pitt volleyball team found that out seemingly, with a weird scheduling quirk by the ACC.

Pitt swept No. 15 SMU (25-17, 25-18, 25-9) on Wednesday night in Pittsburgh in front of 2,512 fans at Fitzgerald Field House. The victory gave the Panthers their fifth win over a ranked opponent this season. In the match, sophomore Olivia Babcock had a team-high 18 kills, while senior Rachel Fairbanks had 37 assists.

Pitt won all three sets fairly convincingly. The Panthers held a 16-7 advantage in the third which prompted an SMU timeout, although it had a reverse effect on the Mustangs, as Pitt emphatically closed on a 9-2 run to remain unbeaten at 15-0.

Just days later, both teams met again in Dallas for a Saturday afternoon rematch. The Panthers clearly ran into an inspired SMU team. Despite taking a 1-0 lead after the first set, the Mustangs settled in and took it to Pitt, handing the top-ranked team its first loss in a match that went all five sets.

The Panthers claimed an impressive 25-13 set win in the third, but SMU managed to stave off elimination in the fourth, but taking the decisive fifth set 15-9 to hand Pitt its first loss of the season. Despite the setback, Dan Fisher’s team still topped the AVCA Coaches Poll this week. Although, No. 2 Nebraska and No. 3 Penn State each got first place a votes, thus closing the gap on Pitt’s grasp on the top spot.

Pitt hosts two matches this weekend in Pittsburgh. The first will be on Friday night against Cal, before a big one on Sunday. No. 5 Stanford will be in town making this the second top-five match Pitt has hosted this year. This one will be televised on ESPN at 3:00 p.m., giving this Pitt team.a much-deserved national spotlight.

Men’s Soccer

Record: 10-3 (4-1 ACC)

Ranking: No. 4 (United Soccer Coaches)

Last week: Lost to Cal 1-0; Lost to High Point 1-0

Schedule

Saturday 10/19: @ No. 7 North Carolina 6:00 p.m. (ACCNX)

The Pitt men’s soccer team had enjoyed an impressive stay at the top of the rankings in recent weeks, but the team is coming back down to earth a little. The Panthers lost last week against Cal 1-0, and also dropped another 1-0 decision to High Point on Monday. In the most recent United Soccer Coaches Poll, Pitt dropped to No. 4.

Pitt still holds an impressive 10-3 record to date.

The Panthers are 4-1 in the conference with only three matches remaining before the ACC Tournament. The first of which is a big one this Saturday. Jay Vidovich’s team will head to Chapel Hill to take on No. 7 North Carolina. The Panthers and Tar Heels played to a 0-0 draw in 2023 and have both routinely been towards the top of the ACC in recent seasons, making for another top-tier match in the best league in the country.

Women’s Soccer

Record: 9-3-2 (3-2-1 ACC)

Ranking: Receiving votes

Last week: Defeated Syracuse 3-0

Schedule

Thursday 10/17: @Miami 7:00 p.m.

Sunday 10/20: @Florida State 1:00 p.m.

The Pitt women’s soccer team currently is enjoying a modest two-game winning streak. In their only game last week, the Panthers took down Syracuse 3-0 at Ambrose Urbanic Field. The win vaulted Pitt’s ACC record to 3-2-1, good enough for a three-way tie for sixth with Cal and Florida State.

In the Syracuse match, the teams played to a 0-0 draw in the first half, but then the Panthers closed strong. Deborah Abiodun got the scoring going in the 75th minute, then did it again in the 80th minute to make it 2-0. Those were the second and third goals of her season.

At the 85-minute mark, Ellie Coffield buried her second of the season to set the final at 3-0. The Panthers will look to carry this momentum into a big weekend in Florida. The Panthers will take on Miami on Thursday, before a big one in Tallahassee on Sunday.

Pitt lost six matches in 2023 on the way to its first Elite 8 season in program history. Three of those defeats came at the hands to Florida State, including the Elite 8 match. Pitt has plenty of incentive for payback, plus it’s a crucial match for this year’s ACC standings and bolstering their NCAA Tournament bid.