Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
EISL Championships
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Men's Swimming Uses Depth To Surge Ahead At EISL Championships
March 02, 2006 | Men's Swimming and Diving
March 2, 2006
Complete Results
NEW YORK, N.Y. - The Princeton men's swimming and diving team claimed four second-place finishes during the first session of the 2006 EISL championships. The only first place the Tigers earned was the most important one; Princeton ended day one of the championships in first place, 104 points ahead of defending champion Harvard.
Princeton followed the lead of its female counterparts, which used an early surge to run away with the 2006 Ivy League championship. The women's team led by 102 points after the first session, two points fewer than the men's team leads by. A first-day lead doesn't guarantee anything, considering the Princeton men held a 29-point lead after one session in 2005. Harvard ended up winning the title 96.5 points.
Harvard took the early lead, winning the 200 free relay by the slimmest of margins over Princeton. The Crimson's winning time of 1:20.70 was .03 of a second quicker than the time put forth by seniors Will Reinhardt and Alan Fishman and freshmen Mike Carter and Doug Lennox.
Third-place Cornell put forth an impressive showing on day one, led by another EISL title for junior Mike Smit, who won the 500 free in 4:24.26. Princeton freshman Robert Griest took fourth (4:27.09), while senior Brian Shue took sixth (4:29.29) and junior Dave Ashley took eighth (4:34.20).
Princeton made a big move in the 200 IM, claiming four of the top eight spots. Junior Meir Hasbani led the way with a second-place showing (1:49.28), while freshman Will Schaffer took fourth in 1:50.25. Seventh-place Sami Mardam-Bey came in at 1:51.61, while Tim Ruse finished eighth in 1:53.78. Reinhardt's reign as the 50 free champion ended Thursday night, when his time of 20.19 finished second to Yale freshman Alex Righi's winning time of 19.83. Princeton still gained an edge on Harvard in the race, with the Crimson picking up seventh in the final race.
Princeton placed two divers in the top 10 of the 1-meter event, led by Kent Demond's second-place score of 294.35. Stuart Malcolm placed 10th with 268.85 points.
Cornell kept Harvard from sweeping the relays by winning a tight battle in the 400 medley relay. Mike Zee joined Hasbani, Lennox and Reinhardt for a fourth-place finish in a time of 3:18.28.
Friday prelims start at 11 a.m. and the finals begin at 6 p.m.