Men's Swimming History & Honors
From its coaches to its titles and many historic moments, here is a brief glance at the history of Princeton Men's Swimming & Diving.
All-Time Coaches
| Coach (Years) | W | L | T | Pct. |
| Frank Sullivan (1911-18) | 35 | 25 | 0 | .583 |
| F.W. Luehring (1918-19) | 2 | 2 | 0 | .500 |
| Frank Sullivan (1919-28) | 51 | 29 | 0 | .638 |
| Frank Sullivan (total) | 86 | 54 | 0 | .614 |
| Howard Stepp (1928-53) | 163 | 66 | 0 | .712 |
| Howard Canoune (1953-58) | 31 | 22 | 3 | .580 |
| Bob Clotworthy (1958-70) | 105 | 44 | 0 | .705 |
| Bill Farley (1968-79) | 81 | 21 | 0 | .794 |
| Rob Orr (1979-2019) | 313 | 50 | 0 | .862 |
| Matt Crispino (2019-pres.) | 37 | 11 | .771 |
Eastern Intercollegiate Swimming League (EISL)/Ivy League Championships (27): 1972, 1976, 1977, 1980, 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1994, 1995, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2025
Eastern Seaboard Meet Championships (13): 1962, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1987, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1995.
Quick Facts:
• Since the NCAA swimming and diving championship meets began in 1924, Princeton has produced 22 individual champions. Most recently, the 1990 foursome of Mike Ross ’90, Ty Nelson ’91, Leroy Kim ’93 and Erik Osborn ’90 set an American record in capturing the 200-yard medley relay. Ross, Nelson, Rich Korhammer ’89 and Rob Musslewhite ’92 had won the event in 1989. Other notable performances include back-to-back championships by Bob Brawner ’52 in the 200- and 100-yard butterfly (1950 and 1951) and Dick Hough ’39 in the 200-yard butterfly (1938 and 1939).
• In four NCAA championships between 1986 and 1990, Princeton finished in the top 20, including 13th-place showings in 1987, 1988 and 1990.
• Six Tigers have won the Phil Moriarty Award/Ivy League Swimmer of the Meet as the highest scorer at the Eastern Seaboard Meet or Ivy League Championships: Andy Saltzman '80 (1971); Andy O’Hara ’81 (1980); Dan Veatch ’87 (1984, 1986, 1987); Naiden Kremenliev ’93 (1993); Jon Christensen '12 (2012); and Paul Nolle '14 (2012).
• Nelson Diebel ’95 took the 1991-92 school year off to train for the 1992 Olympics. The move paid off: Diebel broke the American record in the 100-yard breaststroke at the Olympic trials and went on to win the gold in world-record time in Barcelona. He captured a second gold as part of the medley-relay team. Three other Princetonians have won Olympic medals: Albert Vande Weghe ’40 (1936, silver in the 100-meter backstroke); Jed Graef ’64 (1964, gold in the 200-meter backstroke); and Ross Wales ’69 (1968, bronze in the 100-meter butterfly).
• Princeton swam in the Intercollegiate Swimming Association (with City College of New York, Columbia, Pennsylvania and Yale) until the mid-1920s. That league evolved into the EISL (the eight Ivy League schools plus Army and Navy), which began competiton in 1936-37. Recently, both Army and Navy have left the league, so the conference meet is officially considered the Ivy League Championships.
• Princeton won the closest championship meet in Ivy League history in 2011, when it held off host Harvard by 5.5 points. The Tigers held the lead throughout the weekend, but Harvard chipped away until the final event. Princeton held off the field to win its 22nd league title.
• Princeton won the 2016 Ivy League championship after trailing the entire meet, including by 116.5 points during the Saturday night session. Princeton, which won multiple events Saturday and had a majority of top-eight finishes, defeated Harvard by 21.5 points to win its second-straight title.
• The Tigers ended the 2022-23 season ranked No. 24 in the final CSCAA Dual Meet rankings, marking the first time in program history Princeton ended the season ranked inside the national top-25.
• 2023-24 saw the Tigers rise as high as No. 24 in the CSCAA Dual Meet rankings and win the Ivy League Dual Meet Championship.
• 2024-25 saw the Tigers rise as high as No. 24 in the CSCAA Dual Meet rankings as they went on to win the Ivy League Dual Meet Championship and the Ivy League championship. Mitchell Schott '26 was named the Phil Moriaty High Point swimmer of the meet and Aidan Wang '27 was named the Karl B. Michael High Point diver of the meet.