Notre Dame will get its first taste of Big East competition this season when it travels east to take on Pittsburgh today at 4 p.m.
The Irish enter the meet following a tough weekend that included a close loss to No. 8 California and a defeat to in-state rival No. 15 Purdue. Though Notre Dame lost both meets, the Irish remained upbeat about the season.
"We've had some really great swims so far," junior swimmer Katie Carroll said. "We're right where we want to be at this point."
The Irish have reason to be positive despite their two losses last weekend, as there were strong performances across the board. Carroll won six events over the weekend, and the Notre Dame freshmen showed great promise, totaling three first-place finishes and one second-place finish.
Pittsburgh enters Friday's meet with confidence after a convincing victory over Big East opponent Syracuse last week.
The Panthers won 10 events in the meet on their way to a 173-70 victory that pushed their record to 2-0 and 1-0 in the Big East.
Despite Notre Dame's inferior record and Pittsburgh's strong start, the Irish have high hopes for not only this weekend's meet but also the season in general.
"Our goals are beyond the Big East season," junior Jessica Stephens said. "We hope to take care of the competition in the Big East, and then focus our attention to the NCAA Championships."
