Seven times at the 2004 Ivy League women's swimming championship meet, senior captain Stephanie Hsiao dove into the water. And each time, shortly thereafter, she took her place on the gold medal stand.
But despite Hsiao's seven-for-seven performance, Harvard still managed to top the Tigers, ending their five-year run atop the Ivy league. The Crimson were a thorn in the side of Princeton swimming this year, as Harvard's men narrowly topped the Tigers to take the Eastern Intercollegiate Swimming League (EISL) championship meet. Both the men and women also fell to the Crimson at the Harvard-Yale-Princeton dual meet, the only regular season Ivy loss each team suffered.
Still, despite the disappointment of losing to the Crimson, both squads had plenty to be proud of. For Hsiao, Ivy champs — she was named Swimmer of the Meet — were a fitting conclusion to a remarkable career. She won an individual event on each of three nights, starting with the 200-meter individual medley, in which she lead a Princeton sweep of the top three. After defending her 100 breaststroke title, she smashed her own school record in the 100 freestyle and guaranteed herself a berth in the NCAA meet. She also anchored four relay squads, two of which shattered school records.
While seniors like Hsiao and Amy Jones were key for the Tigers, the year was also marked by the emergence of several freshmen who were able to make an immediate impact. In addition to Brett Shiflett, who was part of relays and scored key points in the free events, freshman Lisa Hamming placed second in the 200 IM at the Ivy League meet. Earlier in the season, she managed to edge out Hsiao in the 200 IM.
On the men's side, it was senior captain Justin Chiles who set the pace for Princeton. At EISLs, he captured his first league title in the 200 free with a come-from-behind victory in the last 50 meters. The sprint freestyle events were the Tigers' strength, as junior Will Reinhardt defended his titles in the 50 and 100 free events. His victories came after winning those freestyle events at almost every dual meet for the Tigers.
Sophomore Meir Hasbani was key for the Tigers, scoring valuable points at EISLs, finishing first in the 400 IM and second in the 200 IM and 200 fly.
Princeton was represented by Hsiao and sophomore diver Kent DeMond at NCAA champs. Hsiao swam the 50 and 100 free, placing 43rd and 42nd respectively and setting a personal best in the 50. DeMond, who returned after two years away from Princeton, placed 15th in the platform diving event.
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