Pittsburgh, PA - The Panthers have moved to 6-6 on the season with wins this week over archrival West Virginia and conference foe Western Michigan.  Pitt defeated West Virginia in Morgantown on Wednesday night with a final score of 13-9 and closed out the week with a 20-3 rout of Western Michigan at Upper Saint Clair High School in Pittsburgh, bringing the Panthers' CCLA record to 3-2.

On a cool, clear night in Morgantown, Pitt jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on goals by sophomore attackman Chris Wetzel and senior midfielder Colin Peck.  The Mountaineers fought back to tie the score at 3, and the two teams continued to trade goals, leading to a 6-6 halftime score.  Pitt roared out of the halftime break, outscoring WVU 4-0 in the third quarter, propelled by three goals by freshman attackman Matt Higgins and a solid display in net by sophomore goalie Travis O'Connor, who tallied 21 saves on the night.  The Mountaineers made a late surge in the fourth quarter, bringing the score to 11-9 before Pitt closed the game out with the final two scores.

The Panthers moved on to their next foe, taking on the Broncos of Western Michigan in an afternoon battle of conference rivals.  The Panther offense picked apart Western Michigan's zone defense with precise passing and movement early and often, as they jumped out to a 5-0 lead within the first five minutes of the game.  After establishing this lead, Pitt continued to pour in the goals, and 13 different players tallied a goal or assist on the day.  The Panthers' attack trio of Wetzel, Higgins, and senior Alex Powell led the way with a combined nine goals and nine assists, and freshmen attackmen Pete Marino, Colin Schultz, and Mike Cikovic added a combined five goals and three assists to the attack's production on the day.  Sophomore goalie Chris Wimbrow shut out the Broncos in the fourth quarter, recording six saves in his fifteen minutes of action.

The Panthers have one week off before closing out the regular season with games on Saturday, April 26 at the Cost Center against Michigan State University and the University of Connecticut.  Come show your support for our seniors in their last home game as Panthers!

Hail to Pitt!

Pittsburgh, PA – The Panthers rolled to a 27-4 victory over the Blue Devils of Central Connecticut State on Sunday night.  Pitt scored early, with Colin Peck putting the first goal into the cage just 17 seconds into the first quarter, and often, tallying 20 goals in the first half.

It was a banner day for Pitt’s attackmen.  The starting trio of graduate student Chris Roy, sophomore Chris Wetzel, and freshman Matt Higgins combined for a staggering 26 points in the game, split evenly between 13 goals and 13 assists.  Roy had a career day, as he tied Pitt’s single-game scoring record, held by offensive assistant coach and former Pitt stud attackman Joe Grmusa, with 10 points.  Higgins, a freshman from Newark, Delaware, recorded his second 9 point performance in just four career games with four goals and five assists. 

The day was capped off with junior Dan “Buddy” Lomauro dodging to his right and blasting a shot past the keeper, scoring his first career goal for the Panthers.

The Panthers, who have won three straight games, travel to Blacksburg, Virginia this weekend to take on Georgia and Virginia Tech.  Pitt will face Georgia at 8 pm on Friday and finish off the weekend against the Hokies on Saturday at 2 pm.

Hail to Pitt!

Pittsburgh, Pa - In their third game of the season, the Panthers rolled against Central Michigan, topping their conference foes 15-8.  

After going 1-1 during their opening weekend, Pitt took the field hoping to get a key conference win.  Chris Roy opened the scoring just 40 seconds into the game with the first of his three goals on the day.  After the Panthers took a 2-0 lead on a Matt Higgins goald, Senior James Gentile scored the first goal for Central Michigan, dumping in a rebound to put the Chippewas on the board.  

After a close first quarter, the Panthers blanked Central Michigan in the second while scoring eight goals, pushing the halftime score to 12-3.  Goalie Travis O'Connor, who had 13 saves on the day, shined throughout the game, making one acrobatic save after another.  "I was in the zone today," said O'Connor. "They had a lot of good looks, but I was seeing the ball and getting to almost everything."  O'Connor was helped by a high pressure defense led by Senior Max Carlson, who tallied ten groundballs on the day.

After a brief push by the Chippewas in the third quarter, Pitt responded in the fourth with three goals of their own to protect their lead.  Sophomore Goalie Chris Wimbrow closed out the game in goal for the Panthers, racking up three saves while allowing only two goals.  

For a complete game recap, schedule, and statistics, check out the Panthers page at the MCLA website at mcla.us.

The Panthers will take the field at the Cost Center again on Sunday, March 16 when they take on Central Connecticut.

Hail to Pitt!

Pittsburgh, PA -- After six weeks of bitter winter weather, tough indoor practices, and grueling track workouts, the #25 Pitt Panthers will open their 2014 campaign this weekend.  The Panthers begin the season at the Cost Center on Friday night against CCLA rival #22 Davenport.  After graduating 2013 CCLA 1st Team All-Conference Attackman Jordan Richtsmeier, Davenport will look for seniors Dominic Boggiano and Nathaniel Adkins to provide a scoring threat.  Pitt came away victorious in both meetings with Davenport last year, winning 18-11 on the road in April and 14-10 at the CCLA Championships in May.

On Saturday, Pitt will take on the Colonials of George Washington.  Despite being in their first year as an MCLA club in 2013, the Colonials hung around with Pitt during an early season matchup, with the Panthers prevailing 12-7.  

Pitt's high-powered offense, led by Senior Alex Powell and Junior Cheech Gianfrate at midfield, will hope to control the tempo of these early season matchups.  "We like to get out and play our way," said Gianfrate. "When we can play fast and play with confidence, we are a tough team to beat."  On the other side of the field, the Panthers return all of the starters from a defense that allowed just 7.5 goals per game last year.  

We encourage all family, friends, fans and alumni to come out and support the Panthers at the Cost Center at 8 pm Friday and 7 pm Saturday.

Hail to Pitt!

Pittsburgh, PA - The MCLA has released its first Coaches' Poll of the season.  In the Pre-season Poll, the Panthers received 55 points, good enough to secure the final spot in the first set of rankings of the year.  The #25 ranking is a three spot slide from the final poll of 2013, where Pitt came in at #22.  

The Panthers are not only excited to be included in the rankings, but also to see a lot of their upcoming competition in the poll as well.  "It's a good sign of the steps our program has taken, to get this kind of respect from coaches around the nation," said senior captain Max Carlson. "Our schedule is packed with ranked teams, so we know what we have cut out for us.  It's going to be a fun year."

Other CCLA teams in the poll include #7 Michigan State and #22 Davenport.  Pitt will also face #10 Boston College, #16 UConn, and #21 Georgia.  Defending MCLA Champions Colorado State came in at #1.

Hail to Pitt!

Pittsburgh, PA - The Panthers have released their schedule for the 2014 season.  After a home scrimmage against Grove City College on February 15, the Panthers will open their season at home on Friday, February 21 against conference rival Davenport.

Pitt will be challenged early and often this year, with road trips to Virginia Tech and Buffalo, as well as facing top-ranked programs such as Boston College and Georgia on the road.  The Panthers wrap up their campaign with home games against rival Michigan State and UConn on April 26.

For a look at the complete schedule, check out the Pittsburgh page at mcla.us or the schedule tab on this site.

Hail to Pitt!