Stanford continued its strong tradition at the NCAA Championships with a fifth-place showing in 2005, marking the 29th time in the last 30 seasons that the Cardinal has finished among the best five teams in the nation. Stanford has actually been among the nation's top eight for 31 straight seasons, spanning the entire history of the program, and has never finished lower than sixth in the 23 years of the NCAA Championships.

"I thought our team swam really well at the NCAA's and throughout the entire season," offered Richard Quick after his final NCAA Championships as the team's head coach. "We would liked to have finished higher but given everything it was probably about the best we could do."

The best the Cardinal could do was pretty good all season long.

Stanford won for the second straight year at the Pac-10 Championships, capturing the meet for the 16th time in its 19 years of existence with a dominating performance as its 1499 points easily outdistanced second-place Arizona's total of 1237.

The Cardinal also had a superb dual meet season, going 7-1 overall and a perfect 5-0 in Pac-10 action that included victories over a pair of teams (California, UCLA) that had knocked the Cardinal off the previous season. Stanford extended its run of regular seasons without more than two dual meet losses to 31.

Caroline Bruce swept the 100 and 200 breast at the 2005 NCAA Championships as a freshman

NCAA Championships (March 16-18, 2005)
Freshman sensation Caroline Bruce keyed the team throughout the NCAA and Pac-10 Championships. At the NCAA's, Bruce swept the 100 and 200 breaststroke events, while finishing second on the meet's Individual High Point List with 56. She totaled five All-American honors, also ranking among the nation's elite in the 200 IM, as well as a member of Stanford's All-American 200 and 400 medley relay squads. Bruce was named the Swimmer of the Meet at the Pac-10's, taking three individual events (200 breast, 200 IM, 400 IM) and contributing to Cardinal victories in both the 200 and 400 medley relays.

Bruce had plenty of support from her teammates during the year with a total of 14 swimmers earning All-American honors. Dana Kirk equaled the five captured by Bruce, while Brooke Bishop and Lacey Boutwell added four each. Kristen Caverly and Laura Davis followed with three. Cassidy Krug and Desiree Stahley picked up two apiece, while Sara Bowling, Lauren Costella, Elizabeth Durot, Sarah Jones, Ashlee Rosenthal and Amy Wagner added one.

Kirk increased her career All-American total to 14 by equaling the career-high five she earned as a freshman. She was fifth in both the 100 (53.16) and 200 (1:56.17) fly, while adding three more All-American honors on relay teams. Kirk swam the butterfly leg of both the third-place 200 (52.53/3:34.82) and fourth-place 200 (23.86/1:39.38) medley relay teams. She picked up her other All-American selection by swimming the anchor leg in the prelims of the 200 free relay (22.91/1:31.00) as the Cardinal eventually finished sixth in the event (1:30.87).

Boutwell earned the final four All-American honors of her outstanding collegiate career to finish with 18 and rank tied for 11th on Stanford's all-time list. She finaled at the NCAA's for the fourth straight year in the 100 free, taking sixth in 48.96 after swimming a personal-best 48.78 time in the prelims that made her Stanford's No. 4 all-time performer in the event. Boutwell was seventh in the 50 free in 22.57 and also used a personal-best time in the prelims when she clocked in with a 22.45 mark to rank as the school's No. 3 all-time performer. Boutwell added her other two All-American honors in 2005 by swimming the anchor on Stanford's third-place 400 medley relay squad (48.43/3:34.82) and the second leg on the sixth-place 200 free relay team (22.31/1:30.87).

Bishop was 11th in the 50 free at the NCAA's with a time of 22.74 after swimming the prelims in a career-best 22.71 that makes her the school's No. 6 all-time performer in the event. She earned her other three All-American honors by leading off the third-place 400 medley relay squad (54.35/3:34.82) and the sixth-place 200 free relay team (22.82/1:30.87), while anchoring the fourth-place 400 medley relay (22.36/1:39.38). Her 54.35 to lead off the 400 medley relay team ranks her ninth on the school's all-time performer list in the 100 back.

Caverly, who missed the 2004 NCAA's due to injury, returned to take three All-American honors in 2005. She posted a ninth-place finish in the 200 breast (2:11.13), as well as 10th-place showings in both the 200 (1:59.43) and 400 (4:13.81) IM. Caverly's 200 breast time was a personal-best and makes her Stanford's all-time No. 4 performer in the event.

Davis picked up her three All-American honors in the 200 (11th, 1:59.98, 1:59.60 prelims) and 400 (13th, 4:15.76) IM, as well as the 200 fly (13th, 1:58.98). Her 200 fly time makes her the No. 9 all-time performer at Stanford, while her 200 IM is 10th.

Krug doubled the single All-American honor she earned as a freshman in 2004 by earning the status in both the 3-meter (13th, 470.55) and 1-meter (14th, 267.50 prelims) diving events. Stahley scored her first two All-American honors by taking 14th in the 1650 free (personal-best 16:19.56) and bringing home the sixth-place 200 free relay team (23.20/1:30.87) with the anchor leg.

Lauren Costella (1650 free, 6th, personal-best 16:05.94), Sara Bowling (platform diving, 7th, 413.60, 419.75 prelims), Ashlee Rosenthal (3-meter diving, 8th, 476.30, 490.10 prelims) and Elizabeth Durot (1650 free, 10th, 16:15.32) each earned one All-American honor in an individual event. Costella's 1650 free time also moved her up two spots to fifth on Stanford's list of all-time performers in the event.

Seniors Amy Wagner and Sarah Jones both concluded their collegiate careers with one additional All-American honor. Wagner notched her seventh All-American honor by leading off Stanford's fourth-place 200 medley relay squad (25.83/1:39.38), while Jones became a six-time All-American by swimming the third leg of a sixth-place 200 free relay team (22.54/1:30.87).

Morgan Hentzen and Erica Liu also qualified for and participated at the NCAA Championships but did not earn All-American status.

Ashlee Rosenthal finished her Stanford career with at least one All-American honor in each of her four seasons on The Farm

NCAA Zone E Meet (March 10-12, 2005)
Cassidy Krug and Ashlee Rosenthal qualified for the NCAA Championships with their performances at the 2005 NCAA Zone E Meet in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Krug was third in the 3-meter and fifth in the 1-meter, while Rosenthal finished fourth in the 1-meter and 11th in the 3-meter. Both had already qualified for the NCAA's before the platform was contested on the third and final day of the meet, and did not compete in the final event. Katie Lampe (16th 3-meter; 17th 1-meter, 22nd platform) and Sara Bowling (17th 3-meter; 25th platform) also competed in the event for the Cardinal but did not qualify for the NCAA's.

Dana Kirk won her first career 200 fly confernece title at the Pac-10 Championships added five more All-American honors to her total last year and now has 14 in her career

Pac-10 Championships (February 23-26, 2005)
No. 5 Stanford breezed to its second straight conference title at the short course yards 2005 Pac-10 Women's Swimming and Diving Championships. The Cardinal finished with 1499 points to easily outdistance second-place Arizona (1237).

Swimmer of the Meet Caroline Bruce led the way by capturing three individual events (200 breast, 2:09.76; 200 IM, 1:58.40, 1:58.15 prelims; 400 IM, 4:10.31) and also contributed to a pair victorious relay teams (200 medley, 400 medley).

Lacey Boutwell won her third career 50 (22.63) and first 100 (48.85) free conference titles, while Dana Kirk picked up her first 200 fly (1:54.89) victory at the Pac-10 Championships.

Bruce, Boutwell and Kirk were all also members of Stanford's two winning medley relay teams.

Amy Wagner led off a winning 200 medley relay squad (1:39.69) that included Bruce and Kirk in the middle with Brooke Bishop on the anchor. Bishop moved to the front in the 400 medley relay (3:35.87) with Bruce and Kirk once again in the middle, and Boutwell bringing it home.

All told, Stanford won eight of the 21 events contested.

Bishop (50 free) and Kirk (100 fly) added second-place finishes, while Boutwell placed fourth in the 200 free and Bishop was sixth in the 200 back.

Others who reached championship finals or finished in the top eight in individual events included Sara Bowling (platform diving, 6th), Kristen Caverly (200 IM, 2nd; 400 IM, 2nd; 200 breast, 3rd), Lauren Costella (1650 free, 2nd), Ashley Daly (200 IM, 8th), Laura Davis (400 IM, 4th; 200 fly, 5th; 200 IM, 6th), Elizabeth Durot (500 free, 3rd; 200 free, 5th), Morgan Hentzen (1650 free, 5th), Cassidy Krug (3-meter diving, 2nd; 1-meter diving, 3rd), Erica Liu (100 breast, 7th), Ashlee Rosenthal (1-meter diving, 2nd; 3-meter diving, 4th) and Desiree Stahley (1650 free, 3rd; 500 free, 5th).

Stanford was second in all three of the free relay events. Bishop, Boutwell, Sarah Jones and Liu swam the 200. Bishop and Boutwell teamed up with Liu and Bruce teamed up for the 400. In the 800, it was Durot, Stahley, Bruce and Boutwell.

Brooke Bishop had a big freshman season with four All-American honors

Regular Season
Stanford posted an outstanding overall dual meet record of 7-1 and was 5-0 in Pac-10 action to extend its string of consecutive regular seasons with no more than two dual meet losses to 31, spanning the entire history of the program.

Following is a meet-by-meet recap of the 2004-05 regular season.

Stanford 180, at Hawaii 120 (October 23, 2004)
Caroline Bruce led No. 4 Stanford to a 180-120 victory over No. 22 Hawaii in Honolulu to open the season with three individual victories (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM), while Dana Kirk (100 fly, 200 fly) won two individual events. Both were also members of Stanford's winning 200 medley relay. Lacey Boutwell (200 free), Lauren Costella (1000 free) and Desiree Stahley (500 free) added one victory each. Amy Wagner returned to the pool for the first time since the 2002-03 campaign after missing the previous season due to an injury. Wagner led off Stanford's winning 200 meter medley relay with the backstroke, while Brooke Bishop brought the Cardinal home with the freestyle to sandwich Bruce (breast) and Kirk (fly). Stahley's victory was the first individual win of her collegiate career.

at Texas 197, Stanford 156 (October 29-30, 2004)
No. 6 Texas posted a 197-156 victory over No. 4 Stanford to give the Cardinal its only dual meet loss of the season despite four individual victories (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM, 400 IM) by Caroline Bruce. No. 13 USC also participated in the meet but the competition between the Cardinal and the Women of Troy was non-scoring. Texas posted a 230-123 victory in its scoring versus USC. Stanford actually won eight of the 18 events contested as Brooke Bishop (50 free), Lauren Costella (1650 free), Cassidy Krug (3-meter diving) and Desiree Stahley (500 free) joined Bruce on the winners' stand. Stanford swam the meet without two of its top swimmers in Dana Kirk (aggravated back) and Amy Wagner (illness), while another of its top swimmers (Kristen Caverly) swam in only two events before sitting out the remainder of the meet when a back injury flared up.

Trojan Diving Invitational (November 5-6, 2004) - Diving Only
Ashlee Rosenthal highlighted the performances by Stanford's divers at the non-team scoring Trojan Diving Invitational hosted by USC. Rosenthal finished second in the 3-meter competition and was third in the 1-meter. Cassidy Krug took fourth in the 3-meter and was fifth in the 1-meter. Erin Lashnits was ninth in both events, while Katie Lampe was 11th in the 3-meter and 12th in the 1-meter.

Speedo Cup (November 18-20, 2004) - Swimming Only
No. 4 Stanford won the 2004 Speedo Cup hosted by UC Irvine despite competing in the finals of only one race, finishing with 1211.5 points. Caroline Bruce was named the Swimmer of the Meet, winning the 100 breast and 200 IM. She was also the top qualifier in the prelims of the 200 breast but did not swim in the finals. Stanford totaled nine victories in the event as Lacey Boutwell (200 free), Laura Davis (400 IM), Dana Kirk (100 fly) and Brooke Bishop (50 free) were also individual winners. In addition, the Cardinal won the 800 free relay with a team of Desiree Stahley, Elizabeth Durot, Morgan Hentzen and Boutwell, as well as the 400 medley relay with a group of Bishop, Bruce, Kirk and Boutwell.

at Stanford 159, Pacific 96 (January 15, 2005) - Swimming Only
No. 5 Stanford returned to competition for the first time in nearly two months and cruised to a 159-96 non-conference victory over Pacific at the Avery Aquatic Center. Stanford had eight different swimmers win at least one individual event and officially captured 13 of the first 14 events. Brooke Bishop (100 back, 100 free), Laura Davis (200 fly, 400 IM), Elizabeth Durot (200 free, 500 free) and Lacey Boutwell (50 free, 200 back) led the way with two individual victories each. Katherine Bell (200 breast), Caroline Bruce (100 breast), Dana Kirk (100 fly) and Desiree Stahley (1000 free) added one win apiece. Stanford also won the 200 medley relay with a team of Amy Wagner, Erica Liu, Kirk and Boutwell. An exhibition Cardinal team of Boutwell, Bishop, Sarah Jones and Bruce had a faster time than Pacific in the 200 free relay as well, but the Tigers were the official winners with the Cardinal swimming the event exhibition.

Stanford 177, at Arizona State 117 (January 21, 2005)
No. 6 Stanford opened its Pac-10 season with a convincing 177-117 road win over No. 18 Arizona State at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center in Tempe. Stanford won 13 of the 16 events contested with eight different Stanford women's and divers claiming individual victories. Lacey Boutwell (50 free, 100 free), Caroline Bruce (200 breast, 400 IM), Dana Kirk (100 fly, 200 fly) and Ashlee Rosenthal (1-meter diving, 3-meter diving) were two-time winners for the Cardinal. Brooke Bishop (200 back), Lauren Costella (1650 free), Desiree Stahley (200 free) and Elizabeth Durot (500 free) added one victory each. The Cardinal also captured the 200 medley relay with a team of Amy Wagner, Bruce, Kirk and Boutwell. The highlight of the meet arguably came when Bruce outdueled 2000 Olympic gold medalist Agnes Kovacs in the 200 breast.

Stanford 165, at Arizona 135 (January 22, 2005)
No. 6 Stanford knocked off previously unbeaten and No. 4 Arizona in a Pac-10 dual meet at the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center in Tucson. Stanford used its superior depth to outscore the Wildcats, 165-135, despite both teams winning eight events. Kristen Caverly (100 breast, 200 breast) and Dana Kirk (100 fly, 200 fly) won two events each to lead the Cardinal. Caroline Bruce (200 IM), Lauren Costella (1000 free) and Ashlee Rosenthal (1-meter diving) also had victories in individual events for Stanford, while a Cardinal foursome of Brooke Bishop, Bruce, Kirk and Lacey Boutwell won the 400 medley relay to open the meet.

at Stanford 176, UCLA 124 (January 28, 2005)
No. 5 Stanford rolled to its fourth straight dual meet win with a 176-124 Pac-10 victory over No. 11 at the Avery Aquatic Center. UCLA won the first three events of the meet before the Cardinal came storming back to win 11 of the final 13. Caroline Bruce continued her outstanding freshman season by winning three races (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM). Brooke Bishop (100 back, 200 back), Lacey Boutwell (50 free, 100 free) and Ashlee Rosenthal (1-meter diving, 3-meter diving) added two individual wins each, while Elizabeth Durot picked up a victory in the 500 free. Boutwell, Bishop, Sarah Jones and Desiree Stahley were also victorious in the 200 free relay that concluded the meet.

at Stanford 193, USC 103 (January 29, 2005)
No. 5 Stanford dominated No. 18 USC with a 193-103 victory in a Pac-10 dual meet on Senior Day at the Avery Aquatic Center. Caroline Bruce (100 breast, 200 breast, 400 IM) and Lacey Boutwell (50 free, 100 free, 200 free) each won three individual events to lead the Cardinal as Stanford won 13 of the day's 16 races. Brooke Bishop (100 back, 200 back) added a pair of victories by sweeping the backstroke events for the second consecutive day, while Lauren Costella (1650 free), Elizabeth Durot (500 free), Dana Kirk (200 fly) and Cassidy Krug (1-meter diving) picked up one win each. The Cardinal also won the meet-opening 400 medley relay with a team of Bishop, Bruce, Kirk and Erica Liu.

Stanford 172, California 128 (February 12, 2005)
No. 5 Stanford finished a perfect Pac-10 dual meet season with a convincing 172-128 win over No. 9 California at the Spieker Aquatics Complex in Berkeley. Caroline Bruce won three individual events (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 IM) and added another winning effort by swimming the breaststroke leg on Stanford's 200 medley relay squad. Dana Kirk (100 fly, 200 fly) and Ashlee Rosenthal (1-meter diving, 3-meter diving) added a pair of individual wins each with Kirk adding another victory by swimming the butterfly leg on Stanford's 200 medley relay. Brooke Bishop (100 back), Elizabeth Durot (500 free) and Desiree Stahley (1000 free) added one individual win each. Bishop (back) and Lacey Boutwell (free) joined Bruce and Kirk on Stanford's winning 200 medley relay.

• The six individual event victories and two relay wins by the Cardinal at the Pac-10 Championships runs the school's totals to 157 and 63, respectively.

Lacey Boutwell finished her collegiate career with 18 All-American honors

Additional Notes
• Stanford's fifth-place finish at the NCAA Championships marked the 31st consecutive season that the Cardinal has finished eighth or higher nationally.

• Stanford's Pac-10 title was its second in a row and 16th in the 19 years the Pac-10 Championships have existed.

• Stanford's 7-1 dual meet record extended the program's run of two or fewer regular season losses to 31, spanning the entire history of the program. Stanford heads into the 2005-06 campaign with six straight dual meet victories and 34 in its last 39 overall. Stanford has an all-time record of 231-21 (.917).

• The two national titles won by Caroline Bruce in 2005 (100 breast, 200 breast) increased Stanford's all-time total of individual NCAA crowns to 80. Stanford has also had 40 NCAA relay winners. Bruce's breaststroke sweep gives Stanford five straight wins in the 100 and four in a row in the 200 with Bruce following Tara Kirk's four and three straight national titles, respectively.

• Stanford had 14 swimmers and divers combine for 34 All-American honors in 2005. Caroline Bruce and Dana Kirk led the way with five each, followed by Brooke Bishop (4), Lacey Boutwell (4), Kristen Caverly (3), Laura Davis (3), Cassidy Krug (2), Desiree Stahley (2), Sara Bowling (1), Lauren Costella (1), Elizabeth Durot (1), Sarah Jones (1), Ashlee Rosenthal (1) and Amy Wagner (1).

• There were a total of 15 new entries or climbs on the school's short-course yards list of Top 10 performers. Caroline Bruce led the way by putting herself high on the school's all-time lists in four events during her rookie season. Bruce currently ranks second behind Tara Kirk in both the 100 (59.55) and 200 (2:08.67) breast, as well as third in the 400 (4:10.31) and fourth in the 200 (1:57.66) IM. Lacey Boutwell finished her career by moving up to third in the 50 (22.45) and fourth in the 100 (48.78) free, while Kristen Caverly moved up two spots to fourth in the 200 breast (2:11.13). Elizabeth Durot (500 free, 4th, 4:41.78; 200 free, 7th, 1:46.84 - relay split; 1650 free, 8th, 16:12.97), Lauren Costella (1650 free, 5th, 16:05.94), Brooke Bishop (50 free, 6th, 22.71; 100 back, 54.35 - relay split) and Laura Davis (200 fly, 9th, 1:58.44; 200 IM, 10th, 1:59.60) all entered the list for the first time.

• Caroline Bruce led the team with 34 victories on the season, followed by Lacey Boutwell (21), Dana Kirk (21), Brooke Bishop (8), Elizabeth Durot (7), Ashlee Rosenthal (7), Desiree Stahley (7), Lauren Costella (5), Amy Wagner (4). Laura Davis (3), Kristen Caverly (2), Cassidy Krug (2), Erica Liu (2), Katherine Bell (1), Morgan Hentzen (1) and Sarah Jones (1).

• Caroline Bruce had one of the top freshman seasons in school history with her two NCAA titles (100 breast, 200 breast), five All-American honors, five Pac-10 titles (200 breast, 200 IM, 400 IM, 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay) and 34 victories.

• Stanford swimmers and divers also had a lot of success in the classroom with 21 being honored on the 2004-05 Pac-10 All-Academic teams. Sara Bowling (3.73 GPA, History), Erin Glenn (3.83 GPA, Human Biology), Sarah Jones (3.70 GPA, Human Biology) and Erin Lashnits (3.68 GPA, Astrobiology) were First Team selections. Ashley Daly (3.66 GPA, English), Carly Geehr (3.65 GPA, Biomechanical Engineering) and Kirsten Gilbert (3.52 GPA, Human Biology) were picked for the Second Team. Lacey Boutwell, Evins Cameron, Kristen Caverly, Laura Davis, Lisa Falzone, Morgan Hentzen, Dana Kirk, Cassidy Krug, Tami Ransom, Ashlee Rosenthal, Desiree Stahley, Anna Strohl, Andrea Swaney and Amy Wagner added honorable mention honors.