Pitt softball sweeps Louisville, wins ACC Coastal Division

The Pitt softball team was back in action with their final homestand of the regular season. The Panthers defeated ACC foe Louisville in two games with the third contest being rained out.

The team had Senior Day over the weekend, honoring this year’s seniors, and the play was capped with the Panthers winning the ACC Coastal Division. That gives the team the No. 2 seed in the ACC Tournament.

On Friday, Pitt won a back and forth game, 9-8 to clinch the Coastal. Saturday was a complete blowout with the Panthers winning 10-2 and the game ending early due to the mercy rule. Three of the team’s last five games have ended with lopsided wins resulting in the contests ending early, in fact.

The season was significantly different from last year. Despite finishing with a 25-24 overall record, Pitt was left out of the ACC Tournament entirely as they were only 7-17 in the ACC. Really, even though the team has had some success in the last few years, ACC games have always been difficult.

Pitt was a miserable 6-18 in conference play in their first year in the ACC in 2014. In 2015, the team won 37 games and reached the NCAA Tournament, winning a pair of games there. But the team was only 11-13 in conference. Even when they won 31 games in 2016, they were still under .500 in the ACC, going 8-14. And last year, they won only the aforementioned seven conference games. This year, Pitt not only was well over .500 (16-6) in the ACC, they won their Division. The Panthers finish the regular season at 31-17-1.

Pitt will enter the ACC Tournament on a roll, having won 11 of their last 12 games.

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