Princeton University Athletics
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No. 22 Men's Swimming/Diving Readies For Another Championship Run As Season Opens Friday
November 10, 2008 | Men's Swimming and Diving
For the first time in their Orange and Black careers, members of the 2008-09 Princeton men's swimming and diving team will be the hunters, not the hunted.
While that means the Tigers were unable to win a third straight and 18th overall EISL championship last year, it's not a bad position for Princeton to be in this year. There is significant veteran talent, especially from a set of tri-captains who have combined for 18 top-five finishes in their respective EISL careers.
There is youth, including a sophomore class that made strong showings in their first EISL meet, and a pair of junior divers who will threaten for a league title on either board.
And there is the unknown of the Class of 2012, even if it is a highly-touted unknown. While you never know exactly what you'll get from a freshman class, CollegeSwimming.com ranked Princeton as the No. 5 recruiting class in the nation.
Veteran head coach Rob Orr has reloaded for another hunt. If his team has its way, the Tigers will again be the hunted soon enough.
FREESTYLE
Senior Mike Carter, junior Jon Hartmann and sophomore Geoff Faux led the sprint corps last year and should be a strong squad again this season. Carter placed in the Top 10 in both the 50 and 100 and anchored the 400 medley relay team, while Faux placed third in the 50 and anchored the 200 medley team. Both will look to move up the medal stand and potentially challenge for the team's first relay title since 2004.
Hartmann reached the championship finals in both the 100 and 200 and was part of both the 400 and 800 free relays. Also an IM competitor, he will also look to factor in as both an individual scorer and a relay winner. Classmate Chris Quemana, also a strong IM performer, was also a championship final competitor in the 200 free.
The two major names in the distance events are senior tri-captain Robert Griest and sophomore Patrick Biggs. Griest has been one of Princeton's most consistent point scorers over the last three years. Although the 2008 EISL meet wasn't his most successful, Griest did post a fourth-place finish in the 1650 and a 10th-place finish in the 1000. He also has three second-place and one third-place finish during his impressive career, and will seek out a first title as a senior.
Biggs made an impressive debut at the 2008 championships by finishing 5th in the 1650, eighth in the 1000 and 13th in the 500. With a year of experience under his belt, Biggs is looking for even better results next year.
Three of the major freshmen to watch in the free events will be Colin Cordes, Travis McNamara and Bryan Tay. Cordes is a state champion and All-America in the 200, while Tay represented Singapore in the Olympics and holds the national record in both the 100 and 200. McNamara, named the Outstanding Swimmer in Connecticut last year, won the state title in the 500 and a YMCA national title in the 1650.
BACKSTROKE
A stroke that Princeton needs immediate help in, the Tigers may look to a pair of freshmen to be immediate contenders in the 100 and 200 back. Cordes is a two-time state champion and All-America honoree in the 100, while classmate Robert Coe was also a multiple-time All-America honoree in the stroke.
Princeton's lone EISL finalist in either event last year was senior tri-captain Doug Lennox, who finished third in the 100 last year. Lennox also led off both medley relays, even though the back isn't his strongest event. Freshman Colin Hanna, who also has a stronger event, was Princeton's top finisher in the 200 back (13th).
BREASTSTROKE
Senior Easton Chen reached the championship finals in both the 100 and 200 breast in each of the last two years and has swam the stroke for both medley relays over the same span. Chen improved on both championship times last year and could potentially move closer towards the top of the medal stand with another solid improvement in his senior year.
Classmate and tri-captain Will Schaffer is better known for his IM, but he did finish second in the 200 breast as a junior and fourth as a sophomore. Harvard graduate and All-America Geoff Rathgeber was all that stood between Schaffer and a title three times over the last two years, including the 200 breast last year. This year could be Schaffer's time.
Freshmen Ryan Chiu and Jon Christensen will also look to impact this stroke next year. Chiu was a multiple-time All-America selection from California, while Christensen set the Virginia AAA state record in the 100 and was a multiple-time “All-Met” selection.
BUTTERFLY
Princeton has won two individual titles over the last three years at the EISL championships. In 2007, Lennox won the 100 fly. In 2008, he won the 200 fly and proceeded to place fourth at the NCAA championships for his first All-America honor. A member of the Puerto Rican Olympic squad at the 2008 Summer Games in Beijing, Lennox has come off an intense year of training, but he is ready to cap his career with another team title. He will need big swims again in both events, as well as strong performances in the relays, where he competed four times last year.
Carter moved from the free to place fourth in the 100 last year, while senior Dan Eckel has reached consecutive championship finals in the 200. Freshmen Adlai Pappy and Charley Wang are also potential scorers for the Tigers. Pappy earned All-America honors and placed second in the 100 state final for The Westminster School in Atlanta, while Wang set the New Jersey state record in the 100 and also earned All-America honors.
INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY
Over the last two years, Schaffer has finished second twice in the 200 and third (2008) and fourth (2007) in the 400. There is no reason to expect that he won't be a major challenger for both titles during this, his senior season.
Hanna and Quemana are also strong performers in the IM events. Hanna took seventh in the 200 and fourth in the 400 during his first championship weekend, while Quemana improved from seventh in 2007 to fourth last year in the 200. Hartmann also has back-to-back top-10 finishes in the 200 IM. When Princeton is at its best, it gets big points from the IM events, and Orr is hoping to go back to that in the 2009 meet.
Freshmen could again play a big role in that. McNamara holds the Connecticut state record in the 200 IM, while Tay holds the Singapore national record in the 100 IM. Jon Christensen won the Virginia state title in the 200 IM. Other freshmen could also step up, although those three seem the most likely in these events.
DIVING
Juniors Michael Papageorge and Dan Dickerson are the strong 1-2 punch for Greg Gunn's squad. Papageorge placed second in both the 1- and 3-meter events in 2007 and made both championship finals last year, while Dickerson also made both championship finals last year and placed as high as sixth. In a competitive field, either or both could be championship contenders this year.
Yarden Fraiman and Drew Wallace have each shown improvement and will look to break into the championship finals, while freshman Tom Wells, a Virginia state finalist last year, joins the deep crew of Princeton divers this year.