W. swimming: A dynasty in the making

Championship teams everywhere follow the time-honored ritual of soaking their coach with a celebratory shower. For the women's swimming team, however, it was far easier to simply throw head coach Susan Teeter in the pool.

But as she stood on the DeNunzio Pool deck, dripping wet and shivering, Teeter didn't seem to mind a bit. Considering that she had just coached the Tigers to their fourth consecutive Ivy League championship, Teeter has become quite accustomed to the dunkings.

"I'm just so happy for the kids," she said. "Everyone swam so well and the seniors did a great job of leading us."

The Tigers, who came into the Ivy championships as heavy favorites after their fifth straight perfect regular season, were never seriously challenged. Princeton racked up 799.5 points for the weekend, easily defeating Harvard, which totaled 633 points to take second. With the triumph, the seniors completed the surreal feat of a perfect collegiate career.

A narrow gap

After finishing second in the opening 200-yard freestyle relay Thursday evening, the Tigers took four of the top six spots in the 500 free to grab a lead they would not relinquish. Junior Sarah Frauman won the race and would be named the outstanding swimmer of the weekend.

Although Princeton did not win another individual event on the first day, it still began Friday morning leading second place Brown by 40 points, with Harvard and Yale each languishing about 60 points back.

Day two saw the Tigers' advantage grow from a narrow gap to a wide chasm. Princeton took first in five of eight events and added two second-place and three third-place finishes.

Friday began and ended with Princeton relay wins in the 200 medley and the 800 free respectively. In between, Frauman took her second individual event, the 1000 free. Senior Molly Seto then captured the 100 butterfly and sophomore Stephanie Hsiao followed suit in the 100 breastroke. By the end of the night, the Tigers led their two closest competitors, Harvard and Brown, by 140 points.

Saturday evening, the final session of the weekend, DeNunzio Pool was packed in anticipation of the Tigers' coronation. Among the Princeton celebrities in attendance were Mr. and Mrs. Ralph DeNunzio '53, who presented the championship trophy, and Dean Fred Hargadon.

"[Princeton's sucess] is fabulous," DeNunzio said. "It's a great credit to the swimmers and Coach Teeter. Year in and year out, she brings out the best in them."

Racing the clock

The night got off to an electrifying start with the 1650 free, the most exciting race of the weekend. It was immediately clear that Frauman would capture her third individual title. Still in doubt, however, was her ability to swim a time that would make the NCAA Championships "A-Cut," an extremely rare occurrence for an Ivy League swimmer.

With Teeter and her teammates wildly waving her on, and the decibel level in the building rising, Frauman kept on pace. When she touched the wall at 16:25.04, with two and a half seconds to spare, the arena erupted. As she pumped her fist in joy and embraced her teammates, many in the crowd — including rival teams' fans — gave her a standing ovation.

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"She's on fire right now," senior captain Chrissy Holland said. "It's amazing to watch her swim — she makes it look so effortless."

While Frauman was the unquestioned individual star for the Tigers, Princeton won thanks to a team effort. Six of the meet's top 11 point-scorers were Tigers.

Two of those six, freshmen Libby Engelmeier and Eileen Altenburger, finished second and third behind Frauman in the 1650. The 57 points the Tigers scored in that race effectively clinched the title for Princeton.

The Tigers would only win one more event, the 200 breast, in which junior Lauren Rossi and freshman Whitney Ryan finished one-two. Still, the cushion was large enough that Teeter would have more than enough time to wisely change clothing in anticipation of the ensuing celebration.

After dunking Teeter, all of the swimmers took the plunge themselves and launched into a rousing rendition of "Old Nassau." They may have been soaking wet, but nothing would dampen the Tigers' spirits on this day.