Princeton University Athletics
Six Finalists Named For Roper Trophy
May 15, 2026 | General, Men's Golf, Heavyweight Rowing, Men's Soccer, Men's Swimming and Diving, Men's Track and Field, Men's Rowing - Lightweight
Six Princeton student-athletes have been named finalists for the 2026 William Winston Roper Trophy which is awarded annually to a Princeton senior man of high scholastic rank and outstanding qualities of sportsmanship and general proficiency in athletics. Presented by Mrs. William W. Roper and the Class of 1902.
The William Winston Roper Trophy will be presented at the Gary Walters '67 Princeton Varsity Club Awards Banquet on Thursday, May 21st starting at 5:00 p.m. ET. For more information on the 2026 banquet, click here.
Meet the 2026 finalists!
Theo Bell | Men's Heavyweight Rowing
A team captain and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering major from Salisbury, England, Theo Bell has one of the most storied careers of any Princeton rower. Bell has rowed on the 1V since his freshman year and is a two-time IRCA First Team All-American and a one-time IRCA Second Team All-American.
Bell helped the 1V win bronze at the IRA National Championships in 2023. At Eastern Sprints, Bell contributed to silver medals in 2023 and 2024 in addition to a bronze in 2025. The 2024 season saw Bell help the 1V have its first undefeated regular season since 2006 and finish fourth at IRAs, pushing the Tigers to second in the Ten Eyck Standings, the team's highest mark since 2016. He concludes his career with an impressive 37-3 regular season record.
Bell was honored as an IRCA Scholar Athlete twice and has helped the Tigers rise to #3 in the national rankings in 2026. Additionally, he rowed at the Henley Royal Regatta in 2024, winning the Ladies Plate crown, and has captured two U-23 World Championships for Great Britain.
Reuben Cook | Men's Lightweight Rowing
A Molecular Biology major from Dunedin, New Zealand, Reuben Cook has been one of the elite men's lightweight rowers from the moment he stepped foot on campus, rowing in the 1V since his freshman year.
A two-time IRCA All-American, Cook helped the 1V win gold and secure the President's Cup in 2023, a year he was also named to the IRA Men's Lightweight Crew of the Year, First Team All-Ivy and won gold at Eastern Sprints. Cook and the 1V lost only once in what was a historic 2023 season culminating as IRA National Champions.
Cook won silver at IRAs in 2024, the 1V's second consecutive medal, and won bronze at Eastern Sprints in 2024 and 2025. As a team captain in 2026, Cook has sat in the stroke seat and helped the Tigers beat Navy, Columbia, Dartmouth, Cornell, Georgetown and Yale. Cook's contributions to winning and impact on the program will be remembered for years to come.
Riccardo Fantinelli | Men's Golf
Arguably the most successful player in the modern history of the program, Riccardo Fantinelli etched his name in the Princeton men's golf record books by becoming the first Tiger and second Ivy player overall to be named Ivy League Player of the Year three times over his career.
A team captain and four-time All-Ivy selection, Fantinelli is just the 13th player in Ivy League history to earn All-Ivy honors all four years and the fourth Princetonian to do so. Fantinelli won five tournaments over his career, including a pair of Ivy League Championships which made him the 11th player in Ivy history to win multiple Ivy titles. He was a constant presence atop the leaderboard at the Ivy Championship during his career, never finishing lower than fifth in his four starts while helping his team to two Ivy League Championships in 2023 and 2025.
The 2023 Ivy League Rookie of the Year, Fantinelli is the third-ever two-time PING All-American for the men's golf program and a two-time All-Region selection. He has competed at NCAA Regionals three times over his career, adding an individual selection in 2026 to his previous appearances in 2023 and 2025. Off the course, the Economics major from Rome has earned Cobalt Golf Academic All-American and Academic All-Ivy honors.
Greg Foster | Men's Track & Field
A four-time All-American and eight-time Ivy League Champion, Greg Foster is one of the most accomplished long jumpers in program history. Foster, a molecular biology major from Lumberton, N.J., is the Ivy League record-holder in both the indoor and outdoor long jump, setting both records this year. At the national level, Foster earned All-American distinction four times, earning First Team honors with a fourth place finish in the long jump at this year's NCAA indoor championships, and a seventh place finish at last year's outdoor championships. He earned Second Team honors twice before that, again in the long jump.
At the conference level, Foster has gone undefeated in the indoor long jump, winning the Ivy title each of his four years in the Orange & Black. He won the outdoor title in the event his freshman and junior years, missing sophomore year due to injury, and he now chases another outdoor title this season. Foster also claimed the 2025 110m hurdle and 2026 60m hurdle Ivy titles.
An elite competitor, Foster's dominance in the long jump carries through the Ivy League and the nation, and he will help the Tigers chase a third-straight Ivy League Triple Crown (cross country, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field) at this year's outdoor Heps.
Danny Ittycheria | Men's Soccer
The 2025 Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year, Danny Ittycheria has been one of the most prolific attacking players in Princeton soccer history. An economics major from Warren, N.J., Ittycheria led the Tigers in scoring for three of his four years in the Orange & Black. His efforts helped Princeton to a record-breaking 2025 season that saw the Tigers go undefeated in the Ivy League while not conceding a goal.
His junior year, he helped the Tigers to their first Ivy League Tournament championship, scoring three goals in two games to be named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. As part of his senior campaign, Ittycheria helped the Tigers become the first team to win both the Ivy League regular season and the Ivy League Tournament championships, marking their second-consecutive tournament title.
A two-time First Team All-Ivy selection and a United Soccer Coaches All-Region honoree, Ittycheria also led the Tigers to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament - the highest ever by an Ivy League team. Finishing his career with 28 goals, ranking ninth in program history, and 64 career points, Ittycheria is now playing professionally for the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Mitchell Schott | Men's Swimming & Diving
Mitchell Schott is a two-year captain for Princeton Men's Swimming & Diving, An East Asian Studies major out of Newport Beach, California, Schott became Princeton's first Top-8 NCAA finisher since 2012, earning two First Team All-America honors and two Second Team honors at the 2026 NCAA Championships. Additionally, he qualified for the NCAA Championships in eight events.
Schott is a two-time Ivy Championships High Point Swimmer of the Meet, a nine-time Ivy League Champion, and a three-time Ivy League Runner-Up. Schott rewrote the program record book by setting school records in 12 different events during his career. He also excelled academically, earning three CSCAA Scholar All-American honors and two Academic All-District selections.
Schott closed out his Princeton career as a part of one of the program's most historic seasons, helping lead the Tigers to their first undefeated campaign since 2015-16 and back-to-back Ivy League titles following an eight year-long drought. Princeton also recorded its highest NCAA team finish since 2012, placing 22nd nationally while earning its most championship points since 1990.
The William Winston Roper Trophy will be presented at the Gary Walters '67 Princeton Varsity Club Awards Banquet on Thursday, May 21st starting at 5:00 p.m. ET. For more information on the 2026 banquet, click here.
Meet the 2026 finalists!
Theo Bell | Men's Heavyweight Rowing
A team captain and Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering major from Salisbury, England, Theo Bell has one of the most storied careers of any Princeton rower. Bell has rowed on the 1V since his freshman year and is a two-time IRCA First Team All-American and a one-time IRCA Second Team All-American.
Bell helped the 1V win bronze at the IRA National Championships in 2023. At Eastern Sprints, Bell contributed to silver medals in 2023 and 2024 in addition to a bronze in 2025. The 2024 season saw Bell help the 1V have its first undefeated regular season since 2006 and finish fourth at IRAs, pushing the Tigers to second in the Ten Eyck Standings, the team's highest mark since 2016. He concludes his career with an impressive 37-3 regular season record.
Bell was honored as an IRCA Scholar Athlete twice and has helped the Tigers rise to #3 in the national rankings in 2026. Additionally, he rowed at the Henley Royal Regatta in 2024, winning the Ladies Plate crown, and has captured two U-23 World Championships for Great Britain.
Reuben Cook | Men's Lightweight Rowing
A Molecular Biology major from Dunedin, New Zealand, Reuben Cook has been one of the elite men's lightweight rowers from the moment he stepped foot on campus, rowing in the 1V since his freshman year.
A two-time IRCA All-American, Cook helped the 1V win gold and secure the President's Cup in 2023, a year he was also named to the IRA Men's Lightweight Crew of the Year, First Team All-Ivy and won gold at Eastern Sprints. Cook and the 1V lost only once in what was a historic 2023 season culminating as IRA National Champions.
Cook won silver at IRAs in 2024, the 1V's second consecutive medal, and won bronze at Eastern Sprints in 2024 and 2025. As a team captain in 2026, Cook has sat in the stroke seat and helped the Tigers beat Navy, Columbia, Dartmouth, Cornell, Georgetown and Yale. Cook's contributions to winning and impact on the program will be remembered for years to come.
Riccardo Fantinelli | Men's Golf
Arguably the most successful player in the modern history of the program, Riccardo Fantinelli etched his name in the Princeton men's golf record books by becoming the first Tiger and second Ivy player overall to be named Ivy League Player of the Year three times over his career.
A team captain and four-time All-Ivy selection, Fantinelli is just the 13th player in Ivy League history to earn All-Ivy honors all four years and the fourth Princetonian to do so. Fantinelli won five tournaments over his career, including a pair of Ivy League Championships which made him the 11th player in Ivy history to win multiple Ivy titles. He was a constant presence atop the leaderboard at the Ivy Championship during his career, never finishing lower than fifth in his four starts while helping his team to two Ivy League Championships in 2023 and 2025.
The 2023 Ivy League Rookie of the Year, Fantinelli is the third-ever two-time PING All-American for the men's golf program and a two-time All-Region selection. He has competed at NCAA Regionals three times over his career, adding an individual selection in 2026 to his previous appearances in 2023 and 2025. Off the course, the Economics major from Rome has earned Cobalt Golf Academic All-American and Academic All-Ivy honors.
Greg Foster | Men's Track & Field
A four-time All-American and eight-time Ivy League Champion, Greg Foster is one of the most accomplished long jumpers in program history. Foster, a molecular biology major from Lumberton, N.J., is the Ivy League record-holder in both the indoor and outdoor long jump, setting both records this year. At the national level, Foster earned All-American distinction four times, earning First Team honors with a fourth place finish in the long jump at this year's NCAA indoor championships, and a seventh place finish at last year's outdoor championships. He earned Second Team honors twice before that, again in the long jump.
At the conference level, Foster has gone undefeated in the indoor long jump, winning the Ivy title each of his four years in the Orange & Black. He won the outdoor title in the event his freshman and junior years, missing sophomore year due to injury, and he now chases another outdoor title this season. Foster also claimed the 2025 110m hurdle and 2026 60m hurdle Ivy titles.
An elite competitor, Foster's dominance in the long jump carries through the Ivy League and the nation, and he will help the Tigers chase a third-straight Ivy League Triple Crown (cross country, indoor track & field, outdoor track & field) at this year's outdoor Heps.
Danny Ittycheria | Men's Soccer
The 2025 Ivy League Offensive Player of the Year, Danny Ittycheria has been one of the most prolific attacking players in Princeton soccer history. An economics major from Warren, N.J., Ittycheria led the Tigers in scoring for three of his four years in the Orange & Black. His efforts helped Princeton to a record-breaking 2025 season that saw the Tigers go undefeated in the Ivy League while not conceding a goal.
His junior year, he helped the Tigers to their first Ivy League Tournament championship, scoring three goals in two games to be named the tournament's Most Outstanding Player. As part of his senior campaign, Ittycheria helped the Tigers become the first team to win both the Ivy League regular season and the Ivy League Tournament championships, marking their second-consecutive tournament title.
A two-time First Team All-Ivy selection and a United Soccer Coaches All-Region honoree, Ittycheria also led the Tigers to a No. 3 seed in the NCAA Tournament - the highest ever by an Ivy League team. Finishing his career with 28 goals, ranking ninth in program history, and 64 career points, Ittycheria is now playing professionally for the Vancouver Whitecaps.
Mitchell Schott | Men's Swimming & Diving
Mitchell Schott is a two-year captain for Princeton Men's Swimming & Diving, An East Asian Studies major out of Newport Beach, California, Schott became Princeton's first Top-8 NCAA finisher since 2012, earning two First Team All-America honors and two Second Team honors at the 2026 NCAA Championships. Additionally, he qualified for the NCAA Championships in eight events.
Schott is a two-time Ivy Championships High Point Swimmer of the Meet, a nine-time Ivy League Champion, and a three-time Ivy League Runner-Up. Schott rewrote the program record book by setting school records in 12 different events during his career. He also excelled academically, earning three CSCAA Scholar All-American honors and two Academic All-District selections.
Schott closed out his Princeton career as a part of one of the program's most historic seasons, helping lead the Tigers to their first undefeated campaign since 2015-16 and back-to-back Ivy League titles following an eight year-long drought. Princeton also recorded its highest NCAA team finish since 2012, placing 22nd nationally while earning its most championship points since 1990.
Players Mentioned
/ Heavyweight Rowing
/ Men's Rowing - Lightweight
/ Men's Golf
Hurdles/Jumps
/ Men's Track and Field
Free/Fly/IM
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