M., w. swimming both sweep Brown, Cornell and Penn

John Rhodes Sturdy once said, "A ship's not a ship to me 'til she gets her teeth in green water." This weekend, women's swimming took their untested ships out into the green waters of the Ivy League and proved that their armada was more than seaworthy.

Sailing first to Ithaca, N.Y, and then to Providence, R.I, the Tigers proceeded to pummel all of their competition with more enthusiasm than the French navy cannoning Yorktown.

Starting on Saturday, the Tigers easily sunk Penn and Cornell, 183-106 and 202-90, respectively, as they took their first Ivy League victories of the season. While these first meets were not the most challenging for Princeton, the Tigers still went into battle uncertain of the outcome, treating their opponents with a Ramius-esque caution.

"We felt that we could do a good job, but you always have to be prepared in the Ivy League," senior captain Stefanie Lawlor said. "We are always ready for our competitors to be strong."

Caution, however, was less than necessary as Princeton outraced their competition in all events, once again proving the depth of its skill and showing that its crew could handle anything the waters threw at it.

"We have freshmen that are strong in a ton of events and strokes," Lawlor said. "I was really impressed by the way the freshmen performed this weekend overall."

Collecting their booty, the Tigers sailed onward to try and sack Brown, bunkered down in Providence.

This meet, the weekend's main event, ended in a strong 178-122 victory for Princeton, although the Tigers did encounter noticeably stiffer competition. The Bears were led by Liz Daniels, Brown's star sprinter. Daniels performed quite well this weekend and was a major worry for Princeton going into this meet.

"Brown is a very strong team as a whole, and Liz Daniels is an extraordinary swimmer," Lawlor said.

But, in the end, Daniels was unable to guide her ship to blue skies and clear horizons, and Princeton pulled back into its home port flying the flags of another three fallen foes.

With these victories under their belts, the Tigers now will look to the forecasts of their future Ivy League matchups. According to Lawlor, Harvard and Yale "both pose a really big problem," and Princeton remains especially mindful of the defiant Crimson fleet that this weekend toppled Brown by a greater margin (198-102) than its own.

The way things are shaping up, a storm seems to be brewing on the high seas of collegiate swimming, one that should hit Princeton full force as it travels into HYPs and finally faces a true test of its vessel's mettle.

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The men sailed a similar course as the women.

On Saturday, the men beat Cornel1, 175-66, and topped Penn, 187-56. The Tigers knew that the tougher competition would come from the host team, Cornell, but they rose to the occasion and demolished the Big Red swimmers in their own pool.

The first Princeton racers of the meet, senior Steve Fleming, junior Mike Delaney, freshman Mike Zee and senior Mike Salerno, set a new pool record in the 400-yard free relay. This forward momentum didn't stop there for the Tigers, who won 11 of the 13 events on the day. Junior Nick Lee added a first-place performance in the one-meter diving event.

After scarring the Cornell pool with the team's first wins of the season, the Tigers traveled to Brown and dished out another round of first-class racing. The Bears fell to a merciless Princeton team, 175-107.

The Tigers showed that they are capable of poisoning the Ivies with their speed and determination, starting off the Ivy League swim season with a 3-0 record. The victories won't stop there as the Tigers host the Princeton Invitational on the weekend of Dec. 5. In two weeks, more swim teams — including American, Boston College, California, College of New Jersey, Columbia, Northeastern, Rider, Rutgers, St. John's and Villanova — will feel the force of the revived Princeton swim team .

For the past 16 years, the Tigers have dueled with Harvard for first place, falling short last season in the Ivy League Championship but finishing 19th at NCAAs, the best place of all Ivy League squads. With a fast and well-rounded mix of talent, Princeton fans can expect no less important contributions from all depths of the team.