in Pitt Football 1,368 Words

Women Volleyballers Beat Utah

If this looks a day late it is. John in SC wrote this and sent it to me about three days ago.  I simply forgot to post it in a timely manner. I have apologized to John and now to our readers. That’s what happens sometimes when a blog isn’t the most important thing in one’s life.  So I’m posting it now because even though the game has passed the info John shares with us is still valid and important – a teaching tool also as may be.

Pitt won this match against the #14 Utah team in a convincing 3-0 manner.

Pitt women’s volleyball opponent in this year’s NCAA Women’s Volleyball Tournament’s second round is the University of Utah Utes from the Pacific Athletic Conference (PAC-12) conference who are current ranked #10 nationally. The Utes finished third in the conference at the end of the regular season.

In a conference long dominated by Stanford, this year’s conference champion was the University of Washington. The PAC-12 placed five teams in this year’s tournament. This was the second highest total by a conference only behind the six teams placed in the tournament from the Big Ten.

The other three teams from the PAC-12 in the tournament are 2nd place Oregon, 4th place Washington State, and 5th place UCLA. Utah was seeded 14th in the tournament bracket and got a first round bye.

Utah finished the season with a 13-4 record. They played their last match on March 28th. Utes have victories over two ranked teams. The first number in front of the team is their ranking when Utah defeated them, and the second number is their current ranking. 17, 15 UCLA (split series) and 15, 17 Washington State (2nd match cancelled).

Utah’s matches against #22/16 Oregon were cancelled and they lost both matches against #9/7 Washington. Utah was ranked 7th going into their matches with Washington. Utah’s other loss was against Colorado (8-12) on March 1st and is their last loss.

In comparison, Pitt has victories over four teams that were ranked when they played them. They split matches with #6/13 Louisville and #5/22 Notre Dame. They won their only matches with #20/23 Georgia Tech and #25/ (#28) Florida State. The rankings of Louisville and Notre Dame when Pitt played them were during the fall season when the two power conferences of volleyball, The Big 10 and the PAC-12, were not playing.

They would have been ranked about where they both are now if everyone had been playing. Pitt’s other two losses were the first two matches of the fall season against a mediocre Syracuse team (7-8). Pitt was undefeated in the spring season winning all 12 matches they played. Their last loss was Louisville in the last match of the fall season. Pitt’s record is 16-4 and they are currently ranked #19.

Pitt and Utah have met two times previously. Pitt had won both matches. In their last meeting on 9/14/2019 Pitt beat a #16 Utah team 3-1. The match was at a tournament in California.

Utah has a 0.256 hitting percentage and they have limited their opponents 0.159. They have a bit of a service problem with 107 aces versus 127 errors. The Utes are led by All American #1 Dani Drews, a 6’0” senior. She is their leading hitter having more than twice as many kills as the next leading hitter.

The two other hitters of note are #4 Kenzie Koerber, a 6’3” senior, and #13 Madelyn Robinson, a 5’10” junior. Koerber also their best server with 26 aces vs. 20 errors. The best two blockers on the team are #19 Phoebe Grace, a 6’2” RS junior, with 63 and # 10 Kennedi Evans, a 6’2” RS sophomore with 56.  Koerber is third in blocks. The Utes only use one setter, #9 Saige Ka’aha’aina-Torres, 

SAIGE KA'AHA'AINA-TORRES on Twitter: "Very excited to announce that I have decided to play volleyball at the University of Utah! This was a very difficult and stressful decision but I cannot wait to be attending this amazing school next year!! Go Utes ...a 6’0” junior. She is also the team leader in digs. A freshman, #17 Vanessa Ramirez, is the main libero and is second in digs. Interestingly, Drews and Koerber are 3rd and 4th in digs. This indicates they play all six rotations.

In summary the Utes are taller than us but are not very deep in hitters. They have blockers who are not an offensive threat. They only use one setter, and she is also a key part of their defense. They have two players, Drews and Koerber who are very multidimensional in the mold of Pitt’s Kayla Lund.

Dani Drews is the PAC-12 player of the year, was an AVCA 1st team All-American last year and is the leader of the team. Koerber was also all conference. The PAC-12 only has one all-conference team. Honorable mentions were Ka’aha’aina-Torres and Robinson.

Here are the keys to the match and what Pitt needs to do to win. First thing Pitt must do is get off to a quick start and limit the match to no more than four sets.

Pitt will have played less than 24 hours before the match whereas Utah has not played a competitive match since March 28th. The Utes will be fresh but they also may be rusty. If Pitt must go to a fifth set, their legs are going to start failing them and against a taller team this is a recipe for disaster.

Setting is the second major thing that Pitt must do well. While the Utes have a bit of a setting problem, Pitt has a MAJOR problem with 68 aces to 138 errors. That is horrible, with twice as many errors as aces. Even if you take out the ghastly stats of the two Syracuse matches with four aces to 21 errors the ratio is still awfully bad. There were additional factors for the Syracuse losses but serving was one of the major factors for the losses.

The third major thing Pitt must do is have good communication between players to let the front line know who the players are across the net and where they are located. Pitt’s blockers need to concentrate on double teaming Dani Drews. We need to eliminate her as much as possible as a weapon. Drews is not tall enough to hit over our blockers. Pitt needs to force the rest of the Utes to score. That is what Washington did and, Colorado, in their one win.

The second person to concentrate on is Koerber. She is going to be a height problem. If possible, we need to get Starks and Lockwood on her as much as possible. For Pitt’s offense to produce we need to use all our six hitters. The setters and hitters need to know where the blockers are versus the rest of the players.

The Ute players are more specialists than Pitt’s players especially the Utes front line. We need to avoid their taller blockers and attack their hitters. If I were the Utes, I would concentrate on Lund and Ndee. Even if they do that, I think our other hitters can carry us through the match to victory. If we slowdown Drew and Koerber, the Utes do not have enough depth to overcome that. Drew is going to be a force in the match, we just do not want her to dominate it! Because the Utes only have one setter, she will be on the front line sometimes.

This will happen more often if there are a lot of possession changes/rotations during a set due5-1 Rotation Cheat Sheet : volleyball to the limited number of substitutions. When Utah is in a rotation where the setter is on the front line, that is when Pitt needs to go on some runs. This is another reason it is critical Pitt serve well to keep Utah in such an alignment. Because the Utes have such tall blockers, Pitt will be attacking with Lund and other hitters from back. Utah will also be doing that with Drew and Koerber.

Here is my prediction for the outcome. If the match is only three sets, Pitt will have an 80% chance of winning. At four sets the chances of winning drop to 60%. If the match goes to five sets, I think Pitt only has a 30% chance of winning. Pitt’s chances for all three scenarios improve by 10% if we just keep the service aces and errors even!

Go Panthers!

Here is what John’s predicting powers did for us (100% result of the 80% thought!) Here is the full and current bracket in clearer text.

 

86 thoughts on “Women Volleyballers Beat Utah”

    1. Soccer made the playoffs for the first time in over 50 years prior to covid. And it didn’t take Coach Jay over 6 years to do it. Pitt soccer was a horrible program when he took over. But he made significant progress each year. And now pitt is considered an elite program. Barnes made a good hire.

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        1. You win some and you lose some. That Stallings fiasco was 100 percent on his buddies search firm. Gallagher should have never allowed it. You really need to blame him and the BoT for a poor hiring process.

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        2. Pitt might be in a better place with Stallings right now. Carr, Parker and Bryce Golden is a better three-man start than what Capel has at the moment. Hard to fathom, but that is how bad Capel and his crew have been at Pitt.

          Stallings and Capel are just two more examples of decision malpractice by the Pitt administration when it comes to sports.

          Liked by 1 person

          1. Correct. The hiring process is fundamentally flawed. It isn’t 100 percent the AD’s fault in any of this. But they do bare most of the blame or credit in some cases…see coach Gavin and Bell. But even the Gavin hire was only because santoro fell through and it looked very bad how it all transpired.

            Pitt needs to reevaluate its hiring practices, policies and procedures. I mean how do you even allow nepotism to even happen. Simple stuff like that.

            If I can come up with two solid lists of five replacement coaches for both basketball and football in less than 4 hours of research for each, why can’t Pitt ever get a football hire right? And why can’t they find Dixon’s replacement. No, pitt just found the worst five year stretch of basketball since 1964-1969 instead.

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  3. And Jerry D.’s article on the volleyball game:

    https://triblive.com/sports/pitts-womens-volleyball-team-makes-history-reaches-ncaa-sweet-16-after-defeating-utah/

    “Anything to relieve the tension and relax after making program history Thursday night with a 25-16, 25-18, 25-19 straight-set victory against Utah (13-5 and the No. 10 team in the nation) at Omaha’s CHI Health Center.

    The victory erased all the frustrations from Pitt’s second-round losses in the past four tournaments and set up a program-first Sweet 16 game against Minnesota, the No. 3 seed, at 1 p.m. Sunday. The game will be streamed on ESPN3.”

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Fisher, another Barnes hire, has gotten Pitt into the playoffs for four years running now. And you knew right away like coach Jay that he was a winner.

      Pitt was actually ranked number two last year for a time and were ranked 6 in the playoffs. But could never reach the sweet 16 in fishers tenure…until now.

      I’m glad fisher got over the hump. Minnesota is a very good school and program. They have a freshman player of the year and I think two senior studs that Pitt would die for. They are more talented than Pitt. But Pitt has a chance. Pitt is clearly the underdog in this one.

      Game Sunday

      Pitt soccer Saturday not only is for ACC hardware but for a critical seed in the NCAA playoffs. Pitt needs an easy path to comfortably make the final 4!

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Minnesota is coached by Hugh McCutcheon, who coached both men’s and women’s Olympic teams in the past. He won a gold with the men and silver ( I think) with the women.

        Liked by 2 people

        1. Pitt and Minnesota share a common coach, the great Mike Herbert. I encourage everyone to look him up on Wikipedia. A great one that Pitt let get away:(

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          1. Pitt did not let him get away, Coach Hebert moved due to family issues! He liked Pittsburgh very much and lived in Squirrel Hill, Matter of fact his strong recommendation of Fisher is one of the main reasons he was hired by Pitt.

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            1. Thanks for the info. Did not know the details. Based on your comment you seem to know a lot more on the family situation. I stand corrected. I did know about the Fisher connection and that Hebert was on good terms with Pitt.

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              1. Knew him personally, incredibly knowledgeable and easier to approach. Tried his best to get us a replacement(Sheldon Collier-tOSU). Not bad but not quite at his level, maybe too young and not as commited.

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                1. I would have enjoyed talking to him! He was one of those people who shaped U.S. volleyball into what it has now become.

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                  1. I’m sure you would have. Funny thing is after seeing me playing pick up basketball at Trees Hall he mentioned that he had originally gone to UC Santa Barbara on a BB scholarship but realized he enjoyed playing beach volley ball and drinking beer more. Man had serious hops for a white dude! 🙂

                    Liked by 1 person

          1. This last part of this quote from Coach Fisher says a lot, in my mind, about HIS personal quality, in addition to being a heckuva coach:

            “To be good enough to be in this situation and actually do it means a lot,” Pitt head coach Dan Fisher said. “It’s a sense of accomplishment, but … seeing the joy on their faces is pretty fun.”

            Liked by 2 people

    1. If I’m reading the bracket right, If Pitt can get past Minnesota to the elite 8, I like Pitts chances against either Louisville or Washington. But they have no chance against Kentucky in the final 4. It would take a huge upset. I’d crown fisher coach for life if that happened.

      Wisconsin the defending champs are clearly the best team in the tournament.

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  5. funny, I couldn’t care less about the minor sports,,,, until they win, then it is at least briefly as good as the feeling of Pitt’s success with the major that I felt personally in basketball

    Tex’s post with video has me smiling for the ladies and for PITT

    H2Pitt wVB!!!

    H2P!!!

    Liked by 1 person

  6. Actually my prediction was Pitt had a 90% chance of winning the match if they were just even in aces vs. service errors. Pitt had MORE aces than errors, 5-3. Pitt played their best match of the year at just the right time!

    Liked by 2 people

  9. Thanks for the write-up, John. Not often that predictions play out. Especially on this forum. 😁

    At the risk of my lack of volleyball knowledge being on full display, I felt like the key to the game last night for Pitt was Gomez. She didn’t have as many kills as Ndee or Lund but to me it seemed like every time Utah got close or pulled even, it was Gomez who had the kill that kept Pitt in front. Sure Ndee put the game away in the end but I was really impressed with Gomez.

    It also took me to almost the end of the match to realize that Ndee was taken out every time it was her turn to serve. I guess everyone has their limitations.

    Liked by 1 person

    1. Great observation! Fisher is being very careful who he is letting serve in the playoffs.

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  10. This just goes to show that good coaches make all the difference.

    Volleyball plays in a dump and doesn’t recruit top 20 classes. Soccer plays on a high school field. It does recruit top 5-15 classes however, mainly internationals.

    Yet these coaches are excellent at developing players and using a proven system that works in the ACC.

    Why can’t pitt football and basketball be this way. Those programs are the brand. Those programs make the money to support all the secondary or Olympic sports.

    You see now why I only give money to winners. Trying to explain this to some of you for over three years now.

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    1. The salaries for good coaches in football and basketball are much higher and are waters the Pitt administration does not want to enter. Heck, even some fans don’t want Pitt spending a lot on athletics and maintain “perspective” in the university’s mission.

      Just look at those who were glad Canada was allowed to walk with no bidding war.

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    2. Pitt’s sophomore class was ranked No. 19 in the nation. This class was the one with Akeo, Vasquez Gomez, Russ, Nwokolo, and Browske. There were others as well but those are the ones that have played this year.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Tough to find this info without paid subscriptions to some volleyball site. I know pitt isn’t sniffing top 20 for the 2021 class. I’m hoping this playoff showing this year will help fisher land a top 15 class in 2022. Plus that class as seniors will be playing in new digs. Good selling point.

        Liked by 1 person

        1. It’s going to be a small class as I believe only Lund, Ndee and Levers are seniors. They’ve already signed a very good setter from California and an outside hitter from Texas. That plus the fact the Vazquez-Gomez and Anastacia Russ(6’5) are redshirt freshmen bodes very well for the program.

          Liked by 1 person

    3. Leave it to Tex to flip a celebratory thread (girls VB making sweet 16) into Pitt bashing, LOL. I know I know, you have to voice your displeasure of how Pitt sports are run. It is okay to positive for just ONE day. 🙂

      Just busting your chops Tex.

      By the way, Pitt’s soccer facility is far from a high school field. In fact, they just built the coaches for the sports that play at the Peterson Sports Complex all new locker rooms, meetings, rooms, trainers area, etc. Not sure if they broke ground on the VB, Wrestling, Gymnastics complex yet. If a coach can recruit without those, imagine what they can do with them.

      Now we will agree that after the VB, Wrestling, Gymnastics complex is completed, all effort should be shifted to mowing down everything that is left and building a football complex.

      Liked by 3 people

      2. Yes new video room. New turf. Yet still more dogs than fans in attendance. Anyone with an once of marketing matter could solve this problem. You don’t need a Wharton mba.

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        1. Pitt is limiting fans at the sporting venues this year. You surely can’t be whining about that are you?

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    4. The soccer field is not like a high school field. It’s really nice up there. Not a lot of seating, but then it doesn’t need it. It looks good with standing room only around 3 sides of the field. I love their logo too.

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      1. How many concession stands. One last I checked. How many bathrooms. And last I was there, the players used the same bathrooms as the fans. Who does that?

        God forbid if the three fields are being used all at once or in close timeframe.

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    1. I’m looking forward to women’s lacrosse. It’s also non stop action. Pitts coach is a Canuck. Pitt needs to get recruits from Canada. They could get good real fast. Maybe some promos could be maple syrup night or free Canadian bacon to the first 500 fans, dogs included. Dogs love bacon.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Yep. My son had a few Canuck’s coach his youth lax teams. They played for RMU, would coach for extra money. There is a wealth of lacrosse talent north of the border.

        Wish Pitt would have men’s lacrosse, much more doable than hockey. The facility is already there. By the way, RMU plays on the football field at Joe Walton stadium. Works just fine.

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        1. I never played organized lacrosse. Played some pickup in buffalo. ACC is very good in that sport. Would love to have men’s added but would then need to either cut a men’s program or add another women’s. It is far far less expensive than hockey. Hockey takes a real commitment. And real money. It’s over a $15 million outlay just for the freezer units.

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          1. I’d trade men’s lacrosse for swimming. That way Trees Hall can go for the football field. 🙂

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  13. And keep in mind, the humidity is so bad in Fitzgerald that the court needs to be constantly wiped. I know the ACC brass was not happy and you know coaches and players were concerned about safety. Fitzgerald is an embarrassment. Our ladies play in a unsafe dump. Until that 3500 capacity venue gets built.

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  14. John in SC, great article. Nice to read from a knowledgeable expert. Especially when I know so little about the game. Our ladies have done well. This coming from the 19th best recruiting class of 2 yrs. ago! I was disappointed over last year’s early loss in the NCAA tournament.

    Tex even got into the act and said something nice about – of all things! – minor sports! But then went right back to the dark cloud over his head.

    Scot Barnes is my dark cloud. No question the man had no respect for PITT’s heritage. He didn’t care what his actions would do to the University. For this he should be always be remembered. Corvallis, Oregon is no close ride to Spokane, were his mother is. He should have never taken the job at PITT. He is classless.

    Liked by 3 people

    1. He might be classless but you need to give him credit for hires just like he deserves the blame for Stallings. Barnes actually had great ideas for facilities and donations. I believe if he would have stayed, you would have seen a feasibility study and victory Heights would look much different. Plus you’d probably have some version of a Golden Panthers booster club. He was a good strategist.

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        1. Because I know his history and read his pressers. Ask pat Bostic if you don’t believe me. He worked on a donations project with him.

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      2. dude was a communications moron in his biggest and most important assignment of his Pitt career – the Stallings presser

        “moron” doesn’t even quite capture it

        Liked by 2 people

        2. You need to look at big picture. Morons don’t make over $1 million.

          The real blame is on the BoT and Gallagher.

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          1. many morons DO, and many in “communication”

            Barnes being a moron in the area of communication matters and stands out and shouldn’t be diminished by anyone that cares about Pitt

            there is plenty of other “real blame” to go around, Barnes didn’t use it all up

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  17. Some stats from Pitt’s victory last night. Pitt was lead by its two senior captains: Lund and Ndee. Ndee led the team with 17 kills and hit 0.412. Lund had a double-double with 15 kills and 16 digs. She with that many kills she hit an incredible 0.467! Starks hit 0.556 with 5 kills and also had 6 block assists. Pitt had 10 blocks in a three set match which is very good. Pitt as a team hit 0.369 with an fantastic 0.450 in the third set.

    Utah hit 0.203 overall. Pitt forced the Utes to other options than Drews and Koerber. Robinson had 41 attempts and only hit 0.069. Drew hit 0.341 and had 20 of the 41 total Utah kills. Koerber had 10 of the kills but only hit 0.231. Between the two of them they had almost 75 % of Utah successful hits/kills. Pitt did a great job keying on them both! Pitt targeted Utah’s freshman libero, Rameriz, with their serves. It was effective as Utah was “out of system” quite frequently due to it.

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    1. Like Pitt targeting a weak corner in football. Problem is that pitt football doesn’t have an accurate server and the whipple offense plays into the defenses strengths. 🤠

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  18. Drew was attacking from the back due to Pitt’s blocking. She actually was called on a back row attack error that resulted in a point for Pitt! A back row attack error is when a back row player attacks the ball when her feet are in the front zone. A back row player needs to start her attack with her feet in the back zone. She is allowed to land in the front zone after the attack. Lund also was attacking from the back row for Pitt.

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  19. April 16, 2021​

    Pitt Signs Transfer Wide Receiver Melquise Stovall

    PITTSBURGH—Pitt head football coach Pat Narduzzi has announced the addition of transfer wide receiver Melquise Stovall, who played the past two seasons at Hawaii.

    Stovall (whose first name is pronounced “mel-keese”) joins the Panthers with one season of immediate eligibility remaining.

    The 5-foot-9, 190-pound wideout played in 14 games with five starts at Hawaii over the 2019 and 2020 seasons. He compiled 49 receptions for 480 yards (9.8 avg.) and four touchdowns over that span, while also averaging 24.6 yards on 22 kickoff returns.

    During the 2020 season, Stovall played under positional coach Brennan Marion, who departed Hawaii in February to become Pitt’s wide receivers coach.

    A native of Lancaster, Calif., Stovall starred at Paraclete High School, where he amassed 7,650 all-purpose yards and 88 touchdowns. Rated the nation’s No. 3 all-purpose back by 247Sports in the 2016 recruiting class, he was selected to play in that year’s U.S. Army All-American Bowl.

    “Melquise is an explosive guy with the ball in his hands. He adds another playmaker to our wide receivers group,” Narduzzi said. “When we watched Hawaii game tape with Coach Marion during his interview process, Melquise stood out on video to us even then. When he later entered the transfer portal, we didn’t even need to watch his tape. We already knew he was a really good football player. Having Coach Marion on staff and knowing the character of Melquise made this a slam-dunk addition.”

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      1. His commitment yes, about a mo. ago. The news is him signing the Letter of Intent today. Santos signed his yesterday.

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  20. Huh, Stovall was kicked off the Hawaii team, sat out a year then Todd Graham gave him a second chance.

    Now he’s leaving the Rainbows because he couldn’t “put the pedal to the metal”. Wonder if he told the HC by text message?

    https://www.hawaiinewsnow.com/2019/10/21/uh-receiver-melquise-stovall-dismissed-warrior-football-team/

    https://www.khon2.com/sports/one-season-after-being-dismissed-from-uh-football-team-melquise-stovall-is-humbled-to-be-back-with-bows-and-on-the-right-path-both-on-and-off-the-field/

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  21. Well, just saw this.

    Graham has a .610 win percentage and is 6-4 in bowls.

    Narduzzi has a .553 win percentage and is 1-3 in bowls.

    I would have thought the reverse…

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    1. You didn’t see him coach high school ball in Texas or saw Tulsa games then. Dude knows his football. And is serious about academics.

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Tex: Would Pitt had been better off if Graham was not so thin skinned and stayed in Pittsburgh?

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    2. He did well at Tulsa but it is Tulsa. He should have stayed there. At ASU he was successful with the previous coaches players the first three years (as we like to point out on the POV), then couldn’t win with his own.

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    3. Graham couldn’t take advantage of a weak Pac-10. ASU is similar to Pitt though. Underachievers for the most part though Herm has the program looking better. ASU’s administrators’ excuse must be that they are blinded by the sun.

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  22. If Pitt was smart, they’d get Kasper on staff. Place him in the administration for two years. Or make him recruiting coordinator for football. That man got railroaded.

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    1. Pitt coaches don’t do those kinds of things. Instead of being aggressive, it is passive instead.

      See Capel keeping his staff intact as an example. It’s not working, Jeff! But no, same crew, not being aggressive and adding someone instead.

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  23. POV Friends – here are some great lectures and tours about Oakland and associated subjects. I do these all the time and the prices for these are rock bottom. I’m signing up for all of them and hope to see you there on Zoom also.. My dad worked with and was friends with Virgil Cantini – truly an amazing guy

    https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgil_Cantini

    April 16, 2021

    Lecture: Virgil Cantini’s Public Art
    Holden Slattery
    Freelance writer/reporter

    Thursday, April 22
    6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
    $5

    This lecture will be conducted via Zoom Conference. Click here to purchase a ticket. You will receive a login e-mail at 5:00 p.m. on April 22. (Don’t see an e-mail? Be sure to check your Spam/Junk folders.) Please log in at 5:45 p.m. to allow us enough time to let you into the tour.

    Virgil Cantini was an artist and sculptor best known for creating large works of public art in Pittsburgh in the middle part of the 20th Century. He aimed to make art free and accessible to all, as well as long-lasting, but the changing priorities in a dynamic city have caused many of his works to be relocated.

    Holden Slattery interviewed Cantini for The Pitt News, and Cantini made such an impression on him that he chose to continue researching and writing about him more than a decade later. While working on a recently published essay about Cantini, Slattery learned much more about Cantini and the challenges to maintaining and preserving public art, as well as the advocates working to preserve it. In this lecture, Holden will share some of his findings in his more than a decade-long interest in Cantini and his work.

    Live Virtual Architecture Tour: Oakland
    Tuesday, April 27
    2:00 p.m. to 3:30 p.m.
    $7.50

    This tour will be conducted via Zoom Conference. Click here to purchase a ticket. You will receive a login e-mail at 1:00 p.m. on April 27. (Don’t see an e-mail? Be sure to check your Spam/Junk folders.) Please log in at 1:45 p.m. to allow us enough time to let you into the tour. Please disregard the QR code in the confirmation you receive. Our link to the Zoom connection is your entry to the tour.

    Since 1889, when Mary Croghan Schenley donated 300 acres to the City of Pittsburgh to create a major park in Oakland, the neighborhood has become a great civic, cultural, medical, and educational center. This tour focuses on the portion of central Oakland that is bounded roughly by University Place, Fifth Avenue, N. Bellefield Avenue, and the residential district of Schenley Farms.

    Participants will learn how the visions of architect Henry Hornbostel, real estate developer Franklin Nicola, and University of Pittsburgh Chancellor John Bowman shaped Oakland’s urban plan and character. The impact of historic preservation and adaptive reuse of old buildings also will be explored.

    Resuming our Engineering Pittsburgh lecture series. Join us for an in-depth look at the growth and development of western Pennsylvania’s bridge building, expanding upon the material presented in Engineering Pittsburgh: A History of Roads, Rails, Canals, Bridges, and More.”

    Lecture: How Pittsburgh’s Bridges Developed

    Todd Wilson
    Transportation Engineer/ Author

    Thursday, April 29
    6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.
    $5

    This lecture will be conducted via Zoom Conference. Click here to buy a ticket. You will receive a login e-mail at 5:00 p.m. on April 29. (Don’t see an e-mail? Be sure to check your Spam/Junk folders.) Please log in at 5:45 p.m. to allow us enough time to let you into the tour.

    As one of America’s first large inland cities, Pittsburgh and its countryside demanded new engineering solutions for its growth and development. Various trained and untrained engineers were up for the challenge, coming up with new solutions that revolutionized bridge building. From the country’s first iron bridge to the world’s first modern suspension bridge, from the many noted engineers that got their start here to the bridges they designed, and from the manufacturing that took place here to the bridges erected, Western Pennsylvania has one of America’s most significant bridge design and engineering legacies. This presentation will give that story.

    About the presenter: Todd Wilson, MBA, PE, is a Trustee of Pittsburgh History & Landmarks Foundation and a noted expert on bridge history. He has co-authored two books on local bridges, Engineering Pittsburgh and Pittsburgh’s Bridges. He is also the author of a number of articles and has given over 50 lectures and conference presentations on bridges. A civil engineer, Todd has photographed thousands of bridges across America in every state, and in 25 countries. He is a graduate of Carnegie Mellon University and chairs the American Society of Civil Engineers Pittsburgh Section’s History and Heritage Committee.

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  24. Pitt campus has some great historical buildings, well over 40. And fantastic architecture with a great story and background.

    But what do visitors see when they attend a football game on the north shore? A nice city skyline? Yellow seats? Sprawling parking lots?

    They sure don’t see Pitt and it’s majesty.

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  25. Do you think Narduzzi understands this quote? Naaah.

    Liked by 1 person

  26. Anyone know the prevalent formation that Pitt soccer uses? I’m thinking 4-3-3 which morphs into a 3-5-2

    This is probably over 95 percent of your heads like when dan talks b ball or John volleyball.

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  27. Some one needs to write an article for dummies on soccer and Pitt’s style of play. You could put my knowledge of soccer in a thimble and have room for your thumb.

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    2. Your VB is IMPRESSIVE!!!

      mine is limited in VB even though I played a bit and at 6’0″ could block and spike decently,,,,, even at my best could jam on a legit 10′ rim

      IF I had only been fortunate to have had a great coach like Tex, I’d have likely gone D-1

      😉

      Liked by 1 person

      1. Well if you had me as a baseball or soccer coach, yes.

        I’d do the soccer if I can make the time this weekend.

        I know coach Jay plays an aggressive and attacking style. He uses his defensive fullbacks to press and not sit back passively.

        Like most formations his center midfielder is key. Think of that player as a point guard.

        I think Pitts nine or striker is a frenchie. He’s the guy that’s your go to player for offense. Typically like a center for hockey.

        I literally played every position throughout high school. But defensive back was the position I was most comfortable and best suited.

        I had speed in those days to get up and down the wings supporting the attack. I also was one of the specialists. They are the ones who take direct kicks, corner kicks and penalty kicks.

        I watch premier league religiously.

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      2. Tex has shared with us all that he screamed and became violent with his players. No doubt Tommy, Tex would have whipped you into shape, literally. 🙂

        Liked by 1 person

        1. not sure if I’d have really liked him or killed him

          so far leaning killed

          yeah, definitely killed, or at least fought, beat the crap out of, wrestled to submission, etc.
          most kids today would tolerate him even less

          now that I’m older, I view him as entertainment, most times drama, some wry humor but mostly intractable bluster

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  28. Soccer is pretty much like hockey with five more players and a middle. Whereas hockey is just three forwards and two defenseman.

    The middle in soccer is called midfield. They are the midfielders. Typically your best athletes since they play offense and defense and must have great endurance. They are the link between the backs and strikers on the front line. Typically those players are your best at possessing the ball or controlling it. Think of them as your basketball guards.

    Most great teams have very good goaltenders, a great center midfielder and a very good striker or two. Along with good specialists for free kicks.

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