No Football, but V. Ball and Soccer....

[Chescat]

No Pitt football this weekend, but Soccer, and Volleyball
had two big wins last night. VBall with All American recruits
and one of the top coaches in America is ranked as usual.
I watched on TV last night's game vs #11 GT. Pitt down two sets
came back and won the next three sets. Fitzgerald was sold
out and it was an incredible atmosphere. If it were football,
their players would easily be 5 and 4 star. Also, in the Vballworld,
Coach Fisher would be equivalent to what a Dabo or Saban is
in the football world. Pitt's 6'5" Babcock is often the best
player on the court (19 kills)and she's only a frosh. Fairbanks is
a true athlete and would probably be great in any sport.

Men's soccer, same thing. Coach Vidocich has won national
championships. He's gotten Pitt to the final four stage. This
is a rebuilding year, and they're still good and have beaten
a few ranked teams. Last night they came back from down
1-0, and won 3-1.

Women's soccer is 10-2-1. They beat the "palookas" (Joe,
where are you?....just kidding) early in the season and are
winning in the very tough ACC. They beat a ranked Duke
this weak. The coach?...yup another top coach in America
who has won a national championship. He also coaches
internationally.

All three of these coaches are at the top of thei prarticular
professions. They recruit at a high level, know their X's and O's,
and are setting the pace for other Pitt teams to follow.

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

Women's soccer is 10-2-1. They beat the "palookas" (Joe,
where are you?....just kidding) early in the season and are
winning in the very tough ACC.

Heading into the Duke game we were 9-2-1 and all that got us in the RPI was a 32 ranking. That tells you how bad the strength of schedule was. And beating Duke, a team that Pitt had never beaten before, is a good win, but they are 5-4-2 right now.

In short, they need to keep winning or that non-conference schedule is going to haunt them come selection day.

And not that it matters, but the volleyball game wasn't a sellout last night. In fact it wasn't actually all that close to one.

 

[pittizit]

No Pitt football this weekend, but Soccer, and Volleyball
had two big wins last night. VBall with All American recruits
and one of the top coaches in America is ranked as usual.
I watched on TV last night's game vs #11 GT. Pitt down two sets
came back and won the next three sets. Fitzgerald was sold
out and it was an incredible atmosphere. If it were football,
their players would easily be 5 and 4 star. Also, in the Vballworld,
Coach Fisher would be equivalent to what a Dabo or Saban is
in the football world. Pitt's 6'5" Babcock is often the best
player on the court (19 kills)and she's only a frosh. Fairbanks is
a true athlete and would probably be great in any sport.

Men's soccer, same thing. Coach Vidocich has won national
championships. He's gotten Pitt to the final four stage. This
is a rebuilding year, and they're still good and have beaten
a few ranked teams. Last night they came back from down
1-0, and won 3-1.

Women's soccer is 10-2-1. They beat the "palookas" (Joe,
where are you?....just kidding) early in the season and are
winning in the very tough ACC. They beat a ranked Duke
this weak. The coach?...yup another top coach in America
who has won a national championship. He also coaches
internationally.

All three of these coaches are at the top of thei prarticular
professions. They recruit at a high level, know their X's and O's,
and are setting the pace for other Pitt teams to follow.

Pace …Narduzzi can’t spell Pace

 

[Chairman Moe]

I know that we Pitt alum and fans want our football and basketball programs to be relevant. Let's accept the fact that our "Olympic" sports ARE (relevant) and support them, too. H2P!

 

[Chairman Moe]

And not that it matters, but the volleyball game wasn't a sellout last night. In fact it wasn't actually all that close to one.

that's kind of a shame. From the few photos I saw on Facebook it did appear that the crowd was in full support mode, though ...

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

that's kind of a shame. From the few photos I saw on Facebook it did appear that the crowd was in full support mode, though ...

It sounded loud on the stream.

There were 2,200 there. I don't know what the Field House capacity is for volleyball at this point (I've seen some places say it's just over 4,000 and that is clearly wrong), but they had more people than that at games last year, up to as many as 2,800.

 

[PittMBA]

Heading into the Duke game we were 9-2-1 and all that got us in the RPI was a 32 ranking. That tells you how bad the strength of schedule was. And beating Duke, a team that Pitt had never beaten before, is a good win, but they are 5-4-2 right now.

In short, they need to keep winning or that non-conference schedule is going to haunt them come selection day.

And not that it matters, but the volleyball game wasn't a sellout last night. In fact it wasn't actually all that close to one.

The lower level was full - and in parts of the upper deck. They always keep the upper deck behind the bench closed . It was a very good crowd

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

The lower level was full - and in parts of the upper deck. They always keep the upper deck behind the bench closed . It was a very good crowd

Yeah, I'm not saying it wasn't a good crowd. Just that it was clearly not sold out. There were a couple times on the stream when the camera view caught the upper level in the background and you could see that there were empty places up there.

 

[Chescat]

Heading into the Duke game we were 9-2-1 and all that got us in the RPI was a 32 ranking. That tells you how bad the strength of schedule was. And beating Duke, a team that Pitt had never beaten before, is a good win, but they are 5-4-2 right now.

In short, they need to keep winning or that non-conference schedule is going to haunt them come selection day.

And not that it matters, but the volleyball game wasn't a sellout last night. In fact it wasn't actually all that close to one.

All true about the women's soccer team, but this was a
dumpster of a program until Coach W. has taken over. They may end up losing some upcoming ACC games, but they are now winning some. They're obviously a program on the rise.

As for the Vball game, I wasn't there but was quoting what has been posted on a Pitt website. My real point though is all this positive energy, wins etc., is a result of what I've been saying all along......Pitt has three top notch coaches. They are among the tops in their
respective fields. 4 and 5 star All American types from
California, Texas, etc. don't come to Pitt by accident. Great soccer recruits from here and many from other countries also don't appear here by accident.

 

[Chairman Moe]

Pitt has three top notch coaches. They are among the tops in their
respective fields. 4 and 5 star All American types from
California, Texas, etc. don't come to Pitt by accident. Great soccer recruits from here and many from other countries also don't appear here by accident.

Bingo! At the end of the day, it's the players (on the court, on the pitch, on the field, on the mat) who determine the outcome of each match/game; but having top-notch coaches is paramount. Pitt is fortunate to have these coaches

 

[Chescat]

Bingo! At the end of the day, it's the players (on the court, on the pitch, on the field, on the mat) who determine the outcome of each match/game; but having top-notch coaches is paramount. Pitt is fortunate to have these coaches.

Yes, "it's the players.... who determines the outcome." However,
these very "players" are here because of these coaches and
the program they've established here. Pitt is clearly a
destination school in the college Volleyball world. Coach
Fisher also coaches US teams in the offseason. That distinction
only is offered to a select few. Coach Vidovich with his
resume and reputation is known here and abroad. Why else
would these top players from other countries come to Pittsburgh
to play? Coach W?....He coaches internationally (Nigeria), has
won two NCAA championships (Notre Dame), and clearly is
getting it done at Pitt. Getting top players to Pitt is one
coaching skill. Knowing what to do with them when they're
here is another skill. These three coaches have both.

What I didn't post, but now I will....... compare this to what
we're seeing in both football and basketball. I don't post
negatively about Narduzzi and have tried to be supportive
of Capel..... But seriously, where are those two in their respective
fields as compared to the three mentioned in this thread?

 

[Joe the Panther Fan]

All true about the women's soccer team, but this was a
dumpster of a program until Coach W. has taken over. They may end up losing some upcoming ACC games, but they are now winning some. They're obviously a program on the rise.

They absolutely are.