Rathgeber Owns Pool Record in 200 Back

Ladies and gentlemen, introducing the first candidate for Swimmer of the Meet:

Geoff Rathgeber ('07, Harvard).

Ho-hum, another race ... another record. Just another day at the office.

Rathgeber led from the onset and was never troubled by the competition as he cruised to yet another victory at the EISL meet, lowering the pool record held by former Harvard swimmer, David Cromwell ('06), from 1:44.20 to 1:43.54.

Kevin Mukri ('07, Navy) was Rathgeber's closest competition, swimming a very respectable 1:45.62.

With the win, Harvard has begun to close the gap considerably with Princeton and now is within striking distance for the overall championship.

Wollner Takes the 1650

Samuel Wollner ('08, Harvard) outkicked teammate Eric Lynch ('09) in the first event of Saturday night: the 1650.

Wollner's heroics follow up on his win last night in a race that mimicked this win almost identically. Once again he waited until the end to make his move, and once again he successfully outkicked his competition in the final 25 yards.

His time of 15:15.37 was a Top 10 All-Time mark.

Congratulations Sam, way to make our collective hearts stop for a second night in a row!

Rathgeber Takes Another Title

Geoff Rathgeber ('08, Harvard) seems to only be getting more and more comfortable at the EISL competition. After rewriting the record books in the 200 IM on Thursday night, he went for the encore double on Friday night in the 400 IM. While he did not set any records during this swim, it was plain to see that he was on a different level than the rest of the competition. His final time of 3:47.59 was nearly 4 full seconds faster than his closest competition.

Unfortunately, Harvard's prospects for the team championship took yet another blow as a result of the final of the 400 IM. The reason for this was not from another disqualification, but arguably just as devastating: Princeton took 2nd-4th and 6th place in the competition and extended a lead which may prove to be insurmountable by the end of the night.

A Fantastic Finish in the 1000

For nearly 990 yards, Robert Griest ('09, Princeton) was comfortably in control of the first Freestyle competition of Friday night's program.

Unfortunately, the race was the 1000 yards ... and the 10 yards in which Griest found himself in 2nd place were yards 991 through 1000. That was when Harvard junior, Sam Wollner, overtook him to reach the wall first.

Wollner was nestled in second position for most of the swim and waited for the optimal time to make his move, and based on the results, he chose the perfect time. His 9:06.36 bested Griest's effort of 9:06.61 and allowed for Harvard to regain some vital points that were lost as a result of the disqualification in the 200 Medley earlier in the night.
Sam Wollner (pictured) is joined by Ivy League swimming legend, Tony Corbisiero ('82, Yale), the presenter of the 1000 award.

And We've Got Controversy!

Nothing quite like starting off the night with some old fashioned controversy.

It appeared that Harvard was deemed the winner in the 200 Medley Relay, however the 1st place points and bragging rights were very short lived.

Shorter than any Harvard fan would like, that's for sure.

Within seconds after the final swimmer touched the wall to signify the end of the race, the big board at Princeton showed a disqualification of Harvard for an unspecified broken rule.

Harvard took a massive blow to their chances of winning the overall competition as a result of the disqualification, which ultimately penalized them 64 points. But the gaff also rewarded Cornell with yet another relay win in a time of 1:29.11.

Sanders Takes the Crown in the 1m

Luke Sanders ('08, Harvard) used a pretty unconventional means to upset the rest of the field in the finals of the 1m Diving competition.

He basically played "possum".

But as the old adage goes in sports: it's not how your start, it's how you finish.

And finish he certainly did. Sanders positioned himself comfortably in the "A" Final with conservative dives and putting together a routine that would place him in 5th place at 277.90. Essentially, he did what he needed to do to ensure he'd be in the final.

After that, all bets were off.

In the final, Sanders emerged as the guy-to-beat with strong dives combined with a calculated degree of difficulty. This delicate balance allowed LUUUUUUUUUUUUKE!!! to distance himself from his competitors, and run away with the 1m championship. His 305.90 in the final was a full 10 points better than his closest competitor, Mike Papageorge ('10, Princeton).

Rathgeber's 200IM Romp; Record Smashed

Geoff Rathgeber ('08, Harvard) blasted his own existing Meet and EISL League records Thursday night by putting together a near flawless effort that saw him shave a large chunk of time. His existing records both stood at 1:46.11 and were set last year in front of his home fans. Now he can lay claim to 1:44.67 in the discipline.

His margin of victory, to further display the clinic he put on in the pool, was nearly 4 full seconds.

In addition, Rathgeber's heroics erased a pool record that was held previously by Andrew Thirlwell of the University of Tennessee (2006) that stood at 1:46.92.

"Good ol' Rocky Top! Ousted by a better Ivy!"

Hart Spoils McCloskey 3-peat; Sets Meet Mark

Lindsay Hart (Harvard, '09) swam to victory in the 200 Backstroke in a meet record time of 1:58.58. In the process, she spoiled a bid by Yale senior Moira McCloskey to become a 3-time champion in the event.

Clarke Tops the Field in the 1650

Alexandra Clarke ('10) has inched Harvard even closer to Princeton atop the leaderboard with her victory in the 1650 Freestyle. Her time of 16:19.67 was a full 10 seconds faster than her closest competitor.

With the Clarke win, it is now officially a two-team race between Harvard and Princeton for the title.