Harvard starts its defense of the Ivy League crown on Saturday. (Rose Lincoln)
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – After earning it second Ivy League title in three years to cap off 2013-14, the Harvard women's swimming and diving team takes to the lanes to open the 2014-15 campaign versus Dartmouth and Cornell. The three Ivies will compete in a tri meet this Saturday in Blodgett Pool, beginning at 11 a.m. and will be streamed live on the Ivy League Digital Network.
About Harvard
The Crimson finished 6-1 in dual meets last season, all of those coming against Ancient Eight foes. Harvard had success in the postseason as well, taking back the reigns of the Ivy League Championship title from Princeton. The Crimson sent freshman Elina Leiviska to the NCAA Zone A Qualifier, while then-sophomore Danielle Lee competed in the 2014 NCAA Championships in the 100 fly, 100 back and 200 back.
Harvard doesn't have the depth in numbers it did a year ago, but the depth in talent is deep. The Crimson returns 23 letterwinners from a season ago and features a bevy of talent led by senior tri captains Cassandra Corneau, Stephanie Ferrell and Kelsey Hojan-Clark. In total, the Crimson compiled 22 top-10 program times in 2014-15, led by Ferrell's record-setting 100 breaststroke time of 1:01.90.
After a strong showing, in the Ivy Championships, Harvard returns four First Team All-Ivy honorees in Lee, Sherry Liu, Daniela Johnson and Margaret Ramsey. Victoria Chan, Ferrell and Leiviska all took home Second Team All-Ivy honors for the Crimson as well with their performances.
Harvard welcomes five new swimmers and three divers into the mix for the 2014-15 season, all of whom will be looked to when it comes time to compete for the squad's third Ivy title in four years.
About Dartmouth and Cornell
The Big Green enters the weekend like the Crimson, prepared for its first meet of the year, while Cornell comes in 1-0 after defeating Bighamton, 174-120 on Nov. 9. Dartmouth finished last season with a 6-5 dual meet record, including a sweep of the Dartmouth Invitational (featuring Connecticut College, Boston College, UMass and Maine). The Big Green took eighth in the 2014 Ivy League Championships with 535 points.
Cornell, which finished in seventh in the Ancient Eight race with 662 points, went 6-3 last year including exceptional wins over Penn and Princeton in November. The Big Red also took first place in the Bomber Invitational at Ithaca College.
A Look Ahead
A week after competing in its season-opening tri-meet, the Crimson stick around Cambridge to host Columbia on Nov. 21.
