Junior Katherine Pickard racked up five top-three finishes at the Ivy League Championships this weekend, highlighted by a second-place swim in the 400-yard IM. Harvard finished a close second to Princeton.

Heading into the final round of the 2010 Women’s Ivy League Championships on Saturday night at Blodgett Pool, it was an extremely close contest between defending champions Harvard (6-1 Ivy) and historically-dominant Princeton (7-0). Following two days of competition, the Tigers were leading the Crimson by a narrow margin of 982-944. The title, it seemed, would literally be decided in the final few races.

After Saturday morning’s preliminary rounds, Harvard was confident in its ability to put a blemish on Princeton’s perfect season and secure a second-consecutive Ancient Eight title in the process.

“It’s definitely really exciting,” said freshman Kelly Robinson following Saturday’s preliminary round. “In some races, Princeton’s got an edge; in some, we do. I really believe Harvard can pull through.”

Despite the Crimson’s efforts to match the Tigers stroke for stroke, a repeat performance of last year simply wasn’t in the cards for Harvard. Princeton ultimately stymied the Crimson’s quest for victory, prevailing with 1465 points and thus nabbing its 17th Ivy League championship in school history. Harvard concluded the weekend with a strong second-place finish, racking up 1438 points. Yale (1350), Penn (904.5), and Cornell (734) rounded out the top five.

“Our team fought until the very end, and I think that really showed,” Crimson junior Katherine Pickard said. “We never really gave up. We weren’t quite able to close the gap, but as heartbreaking as it was, it’s really motivated us. Twenty-seven points is nothing.”

During the final day of the three-day competition, Harvard co-captain Alexandra Clarke, junior Christine Kaufmann, and senior Katie Faulkner all swam among the top six times in the 1,650-yard freestyle.

The Crimson quartet of junior Katy Hinkle, freshman Kelly Robinson, junior Ali Slack, and Pickard completed the 400-yard freestyle relay in third place with a combined time of 3:24.94, behind the first-place Bulldogs (3:20.59) and second-place Tigers (3:22.46). Hinkle also posted an impressive third-place performance in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 51.15 seconds.

Adding to Harvard’s high point total was junior Kate Mills, who edged out Yale’s Hayes Hyde to finish second in the 200-yard butterfly in 1:59.09. Mills’ teammates sophomore Hilary Roberts and senior Sophie Morgan also placed in the top eight in the race.

The Crimson’s diving contingent was also integral to the team’s strong finish. Junior Jennifer Reese, sophomore Leslie Rea, and freshman Teagan Lehrmann earned third, fourth, and seventh place, respectively, in the one-meter final.

Outstanding performances in the water explain only part of Harvard’s success at Ivies. Leadership outside of the pool was vital in boosting team morale, especially given the close points race with Princeton.

“If anything’s got to be said for great performances, [we have to acknowledge] the seniors on the team,” Pickard said. “They were great—truly the leaders. They really stepped up when it mattered.”

Combined, the Crimson and the Tigers have won the last 10 Ivy titles. But this weekend’s meet witnessed some exceptional finishes from other Ancient Eight athletes.

“Yale always has the potential to be a spoiler,” Robinson said, speculating about the outcome of the meet before the final round.

Indeed, Bulldog senior Susan Kim was named Swimmer of the Meet for her record-breaking performance Saturday morning in the 200-yard breaststroke. With a 2:09.38 finish, Kim shattered her own previous record of 2:12.17, establishing a new meet, Ivy, and pool record.

But not all of Harvard’s swimming and diving corps was present at Ivies this past weekend, as the Crimson also had a group of swimmers competing at the ECAC Championships in Pittsburgh, Penn.

Following two days of competition, the Crimson was ranked second overall in team standings at the ECAC Championships with 362.5 points, behind Marist’s 390. Juniors Holly Furman and freshman Camille Hendrix finished in the top eight of the 100-yard freestyle yesterday, with respective times of 52.10 and 52.74 seconds.

Though Harvard closed the gap in Sunday’s final, the Crimson ultimately fell short of the top spot, finishing just 11.5 points behind the Red Foxes.

The Harvard ECAC team is composed of mainly freshmen.

“It’s all about strategy,” Robinson, one of only three freshmen on the Ivies team, said. “We want to spread out our talent. But overall, the Ivy teams tend to be stronger, and there are many reasons behind that. The first season can be rocky for some freshmen, and they may just need more time to settle in. Experience is really important, so that’s why the Ivies team is junior- and senior-heavy.”

Whatever strategy the Crimson is applying seems to be working: last week, Harvard ranked first in the country in CollegeSwimming.com’s mid-major rankings. National recognition and steady leadership from the upperclassmen hold promise of another great season next year.

“We had a good season this year, but I think we’re all left wanting more,” Pickard said. “We’re not satisfied just yet. Hopefully next year, we’ll get back [to the top].”