A four-time All-American swimmer at Hamilton, Pitter joined Miami from the University of Pittsburgh, where she was associate head coach for the last two seasons. There she met Jayla Pina, a swimmer who had represented Cape Verde at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
“So much of this job is mentorship, and I was lucky to have some great mentors throughout my athletic career. I hope I’m making an impact on my student-athletes the same way that they did on me.”
“When she arrived at Pitt in Fall 2022, we made a plan with the goal of Paris 2024,” Pitter said. “I had to work very closely with the Cape Verdean Olympic Committee, and about eight months before Paris they told us she could bring her U.S. coach. I was thrilled!”
Pitter, who has also coached at Harvard and MIT, credits her decision to pursue coaching to her own former role models. “So much of this job is mentorship, and I was lucky to have some great mentors throughout my athletic career. I hope I’m making an impact on my student-athletes the same way that they did on me.”
What was it like taking her coaching talents to the international stage? “It was simply amazing,” she said. “The Olympic Games and the pride that the athletes and coaches have in representing their country, it was so cool to see. It was something I will never forget.”
