Princeton University Athletics
Princeton University
Day Two
Players Mentioned
Boyce Sets Ivy Record In 100 Back, Wins Second Straight League Title
February 25, 2012 | Women's Swimming and Diving
Sophomore Lisa Boyce set an Ivy League record in the 100 back and won her second league title in as many nights, but Princeton still finds itself in second place through four sessions of the 2012 Ivy League Championships.
Princeton ended the night with 850.5 points, while Harvard holds the lead with 942.5 points. Seven events remain during the final day of the championships, which will begin with a preliminary session at 11 am and conclude with the finals session at 6 pm. The championships are being held at Harvard's Blodgett Pool.
Boyce, who won the 50 back title on Thursday night, set an Ivy League record in 52.96. She has now won three individual championships, including both 100 back championships in her two years.
"Lisa's prelim swim, which set the Ivy League record, and finals win in the 100 back were both well-deserved and the result of her intense commitment to doing every little thing both in and out of the pool to continue on her path to being a great swimmer," assistant coach Suzanne Yee said. "She finds a way to improve on each race she finishes, and she is gaining the confidence she will need to take her to the next level."
Princeton opened the night with what would have been a Blodgett Pool record time of 1:41.18; unfortunately for the Tigers, they finished second to a Yale quartet that set a slightly faster pool record. Still, Princeton gained on the Crimson when the quartet of Boyce, senior Kerry Gruendel, junior Carter Stephens and senior Meredith Monroe took second in the event.
Princeton had two of the top six finishers in the 1,000. Sophomore Maureen McCotter placed fifth in 10:03.01, while senior Lauren Shanley took sixth in 10:04.94. Tiger freshman Reese Iriondo added an 11th-place finish in 10:10.17, while sophomore Laura Loughran took 13th in 10:12.88.
The Crimson made a huge move in the 400 IM by placing four in the championship final. Princeton freshman Cara Slear was the top Tiger finisher, placing 11th in 4:26.24, while senior Caitlin Baran took 14th in 4:29.22.
Stephens was Princeton's top finisher in the 100 fly, taking third in 54.69. Yale junior Alex Forrester won the event in a meet record time of 54.36, but Stephens topper her lone Crimson rival in the 'A' final. Princeton had two of the top three finishers in the 'B' final, as junior Kathy Qu took 10th overall in 55.69, and freshman Courtney Ciardiello placed 11th in 55.72.
Harvard made another move in the 200 free, placing three in the championship final. Tiger freshman Claire Loht was Princeton's only swimmer to place in the top 16; she took 13th in 1:51.46. The Tiger duo of Qu (1:52.83) and sophomore Laura Loughran (1:53.12) went 1-2 in the bonus final.
Princeton freshman Emily Yu took 13th in the 100 breast in 1:04.81, while both Gruendel and freshman Sarah Liang tied for 15th in 1:05.08.
The Tigers were able to cut into the Crimson lead in the 100 back, and it began with the second championship victory for Boyce. She actually set her Ivy League record in the preliminaries with a time of 52.96, but her finals time of 53.43 was still plenty fast enough to win her second straight 100 back final. She topped Yale's Cynthia Tsay (55.35) by nearly two seconds.
Princeton had two more 'A' finalists; freshman Shirley Wang took sixth in 56.04, while senior Meredith Monroe placed seventh in 56.06.
The Tigers concluded the session with a sixth-place finish in the 800 free relay, as the team of Iriondo, Ciardiello, Loht and Qu finished in 7:27.84.
Princeton will try to make up its 92-point deficit Saturday during the final day of the 2012 Ivy League Championships.