M. swimmers look for boost from Princeton 

Susie Lee : Spectator Staff Writer 

The Lions know what they want this season, and they're doing exactly what they need to get there. Princeton was unbeatable last Saturday, but Columbia was able to use the last home meet of the season as a stepping stone to prepare for its tough, but winnable meets in the upcoming three weeks. 

"Princeton was a warm-up for the rumble with Penn [this Saturday]. The Quakers are a team we can and should beat. If we can finish the season with three straight wins, we will be in good shape for Easterns," junior distance freestyler Chris Ferris said. 

On paper, Columbia lost 144-99 to Princeton, dropping its record to 2-5 overall, but as Head Coach Jim Bolster remarked, "Swimming is a sport where if you lose as a team, but everyone swims well, the score really doesn't mean much." 

Knowing that a team victory was realistically just out of reach, Columbia approached the meet with a smart and strategically sensible attitude. 

"We didn't invest much emotional and psychological energy into this meet, because I think that there is a limited amount [and it has to be used wisely]," Bolster said. "The idea was let's have some good swims and set ourselves up for the upcoming meets, which are within our reach." 

For the divers, recent Spec Athletes of the Week, Princeton was the toughest competition thus far this season. 

"[Mark Fichera and I] were both happy with our performance," sophomore Daniel Brown said. "Princeton is the toughest team in the league and we handled them with style and grace." 

The divers did more than handle the Tigers. First-year sensation Fichera wowed the packed crowd by posting scores of straight eights on a forward 3-and-1/2 somersaults tuck, and closed the three-meter competition with a jaw-dropping reverse 1-and-1/2 somersault with 2-and-1/2 twists. Fichera placed first on the 3-meter, defeated the top-ranked Tigers, and qualified for NCAA zone championships with a score of 343.875. Brown also qualified for NCAA zone competition. 

"We've just got the momentum going," Head Diving Coach Gordon Spencer said. "And it keeps on going ƒ the steam's been building all season." 

If the Princeton meet was any indication, the Lions are getting ready to set fire to Penn next week. With regard to individual performances, Bolster added that despite Saturday's loss there were some good wins at the meet. 

In the 100-yard backstroke leg of the 400 medley relay, first-year Matt Shultz clocked a season-best split with a 51.76. The relay, which also included sophomores Joe Rudler, Peter Leong, and Gered Doherty placed second, falling just 2.1 seconds short of the Tigers' top team. 

Debuting in the 200-yard freestyle, first-year sprinter Joe Zdrilic clinched an impressive win in a time of 1:44.90. 

In the 50-yard freestyle, one of Columbia's hallmark events, Doherty swam a lifetime best of 21.23, but Princeton's Matt Vogt out-touched him by .01 of a second and snatched the victory from Doherty's fingertips. 

Later, the sprinter was hungry for revenge. In the 100-yard freestyle, Doherty blazed through Princeton's field of sprinters and clocked another lifetime best with a time of 46.34, winning by a gaping spread of 1.86 seconds. 

"We knew Princeton would be a heavy contender to take down at this point in the season, but we wanted to ƒ have some real good races because we knew Princeton was gonna be fast," Doherty said. "They were fast, and I think that was good for us because we swam better against them this year than we did last year, and we got to see the stuff we're going up against at Easterns." 

Leong displayed his consistency in the 200-yard butterfly, posting a decisive first-place finish in 1:53.98. 

And in the 500-yard free, Columbia's Chris Ferris went stroke-for-stroke with Princeton's Dustin Lennon and posted a personal best time with 4:44.63, but was out-touched at the finish. 

Saturday's contest against Princeton marked the final home meet of the season, and the team and Bolster gave a heartfelt and humorous tribute to the seven seniors: Kyle Laracy, Mike McCosker, Dayce Schreiber, Jamie Setzler and Tri-Captains Louis De Leon, Matt Gilman and Roy Griffith. 

"I want to thank my teammates for causing the 'I' to disappear and give way for the 'us,'" De Leon said in part of his farewell biography. 

It is the "us" that was evident in the spirit and energy Columbia displayed against the formidable Tigers. To cap off a strong showing against Princeton, Columbia ended the meet in style by clinching a one-two finish in the 400-freestyle relay.