Harvard Tops Lions For Third Ivy Victory

Yale wasn’t the only Ivy League opponent bested by Harvard this weekend.

The afternoon before the highly anticipated football game, the women of the Crimson swimming and diving team took on Columbia at the Percy Uris Natatorium for their third match of the season. Harvard (3-0, 3-0 Ivy) bested the Lions (0-2, 0-2) and nabbed the top spots in 10 of 16 events en route to a 189-111 victory.

“I think the team did really well,” freshman Jenna Gregoire said. “We have really great depth, and in every single race people put up fast times and race to win.”

The Crimson was putting up strong performances right from the first event—in the 3-meter diving competition, Columbia’s top performance by freshman Katie Furr was good enough for only fifth place. Junior Leslie Rea led the sweep of the top four slots with 277.13 points; sophomore Brittany Powell, freshman Schuyler Moore, and senior Jenny Reese filled in the second, third, and fourth spots, respectively.

The 400-yard medley relay was next up, and the Harvard swimmers followed up the divers’ dominance with another win. Senior Katy Hinkle, sophomore Kelly Robinson, junior Alicia Lightbourne, and Gregoire put together a strong run for a finish time of 3:50.63.

Hinkle also snagged event wins in the 100-yard backstroke and the 200-yard freestyle relay. Adding in her races at the tri-meet against Dartmouth and Cornell, the Arlington, Va. native can count three new pool records and an impressive five event wins on the young season.

The one race Hinkle failed to win was the 100-yard freestyle, where the sprinter claimed second place to sophomore Lion Katie Meili. The Texan finished first with a time of 51.49, and she also swam to first-place finishes in the 50-yard freestyle and the 400-yard individual medley.

Senior Annie Perizzolo, Meili’s teammate, also put up impressive times as she topped her competition in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke.

But Perizzolo’s and Meili’s leading performances were ultimately eclipsed by a steady Crimson effort.

“It was definitely a team effort,” co-captain Ali Slack said. “We went into it really trying to keep the momentum up from the week before, and I definitely think we succeeded. The first relay got us off to a great start, and from there on, everyone stepped up and swam well.”

Slack also noted the electric atmosphere that kept the entire team on its toes.

“Everyone was cheering and was very excited,” Slack explained. “As a senior, I’ve been to a lot of meets, and I think this was the most excited we’ve been.”

The squad’s unwavering enthusiasm was instrumental in keeping the team motivated and working hard through all 16 events. In the day’s final event, Gregoire, Slack, and junior Monica Burgos shared Hinkle’s victory in the 200-yard freestyle relay, and the quartet broke an Uris pool record with the facility-best time of 1:35.57.

“The relays really made a statement,” Gregoire said.

In addition to the strong relay performances, many strong individual showings came in from all class years for Harvard.

Freshmen Danielle Schulkin and Sara Li both saw wins in the pool—Li led a Crimson sweep as she won the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:52.55, and Schulkin swam the 200-yard butterfly in 2:03.78, finishing over a full second ahead of Columbia junior Caitlin Rogers.

Classmate Schuyler Moore also contributed from the boards—she led a four-woman Crimson contingent with 268.73 points in the one-meter diving event.

“We had some freshmen really step up and take responsibility,” Slack said of the rookies’ fast times. “We had some seniors step up as well and show how well they could swim. Throughout all the classes, we had people swim well.”

Racing the 200-yard backstroke in 2:04.21, sophomore Caroline Weaver also stepped up and notched another win. She also finished second behind Hinkle in the 100-yard backstroke.

In the 500-yard freestyle, junior Catherine Zagroba claimed the top position with a time of 4:59.95, and senior Kate Mills, clocking in at 2:04.87, capped off the individual events with a 200-yard individual medley victory.

But the successful start to the season isn’t inspiring any sort of complacency; rather, it’s pushing the crew to work even harder.

“We’re going to work on the details and train hard in practice and focus,” Gregoire said. “But even when we’re home for Thanksgiving, we’re going to train.”

—Staff writer Molly E. Kelly can be reached at mkelly@college.harvard.edu.