WMLute if you read some of the Spitfire vetrans books and note's an stuff. They all comment that the Spit V and abouve where great at diving but getting out of the dive was the tricky bit even to a skilled pilot. that is why we lost so many Spits to the 109 as it could slow quiker thus the Spit over takes or overshoots the 109.
You can maintain a much more controlled dive (i.e. keep it from getting too fast) in a Spit than you can in a 109 and it's much easier to pull out of even though the dive speed may be faster.
The 109's generally continue to gain speed in a dive even with the throttle off. In an extended dive you're forced to cross-control so as not to stiffen the elevators beyond the point that you can trim out. You rarely if ever have to cross control in a Spit; simply reducing throttle holds it well within it's dive paramaters.
And speaking of overshooting, while you might reduce throttle to saddle up a shot there are other ways to prevent an overshoot even at maximum throttle and those methods might actually be preferable in order to maintain E.