MAKING A SPLASH: Princeton High boys’ swimmer David Xu competes in a butterfly race last season. Junior Xu and the Tigers got their 2023-24 season off a good start as they topped Hamilton West 111-50 last Thursday inter opening meet. In upcoming action, PHS swims at Robbinsville on December 14 and then hosts WW/P-North on December 19. (Photo by Frank Wojciechowski)

By Bill Alden

While the Princeton High boys’ swimming team has gone 27-2 over the last two years, that sparkling record has been tinged with some frustration.

Both of those defeats came to fellow powerhouse Chatham, with one coming in the Public B state final in 2022 and the other taking place in the sectional final last season.

As PHS headed into the 2023-24 season, Tiger head coach Carly Misiewicz believes those setbacks could spur her swimmers to new heights this winter.

“I still look back to that meet last year and how close we were and how much we made Chatham sweat,” said Misiewicz, whose boys’ squad started the campaign by defeating Hamilton West 111-50 last Thursday. “We were the only team that kept them to that 10-point differential. I think the guys are very, very excited, very hungry, and very ready. They have got something to prove here — they came up a little short the last two seasons and they know that.”

Individual victors for the Tigers in the meet included Mark Lackner in the 200-yard freestyle and 100 backstroke, David Xu in the 200 individual medley and 100 butterfly, Tyler Cenci in the 50 free and 100 free, David Brophy in the 500 free, and Rex Zhang in the 100 breaststroke.

The squad’s junior class of Daniel Guo, Matias Da Costa, Jaden Jung, and Jaiden Xu along with David Xu, Cenci, Lackner, and Brophy, has matured into a formidable group.

“The amount of growth that I have seen from the freshman class two years ago to the now current junior class is insane in such a good way,” said Misiewicz, whose team placed first in the Mercer county championship meet last winter. “I told the guys, ‘You have to put some meat on your bones.’  They are lifting with their club teams; the amount of time and dedication that they have really committed to bettering themselves has been great.”

The Xu twins, David and Jaiden, have grown into stars for the Tigers.

“David is David, he is always someone who gets up and rises to the occasion and dominates,” said Misiewicz. “For Jaiden, from his freshman year to his sophomore year, the improvement was tremendous. From what I have seen, from last year to this year, he is just a beast. He has really put a lot of time and effort into his training.”

Brophy, Guo and Cenci have also put a lot of effort into their swimming.

“David has gotten much faster in his sprints and his distances have improved, he has picked up a little more stroke work; he wants to do the 100 fly a little more
this year,” said Misiewicz. “Daniel is someone, maybe he will get in the 200 and 100 free or maybe he will be one of our sprinters, a breaststroker or IMer. Tyler did well for us last year. He is a high school only swimmer. He had a really, really good year and has been training all summer. He is in a really good spot to start the dual meet season.”

The Tigers boast good depth across classes with seniors Zach Guan, Henry Xu, and Alex Aprikian together with sophomore Jerry Liu and freshmen Michael Chorba and Sergio Navarro.

While most of the team’s stars swim for club teams, they bring a special spirit to the deck for the Tigers.

“Sometimes when you come in as a freshman, there are all of these questions, ‘What is high school swimming? What is it about?’ and then when you actually get into it and you realize, ‘OK, there is this team and my friends are here,’” said Misiewicz, whose team swims at Robbinsville on December 14 and then hosts WW/P-North on December 1. “I am competing for my school and it brings out another side of you.”

In the view of Misiewicz, her swimmers are determined to compete hard from beginning to end this winter.

“In hearing them talk on the pool deck and talking with them, they are already looking forward to counties and postseason,” said Misiewicz.