Mitch Dalton is entering his third season as the assistant coach of the Princeton men's swimming and diving team. In his first two seasons with the Tiger program, he has helped guide the men to a pair of Ivy League championships, while also generating a pair of highly touted recruiting classes.

His first year was as memorable as it gets, as he helped lead the Tigers to a dramatic 5.5-point victory at the 2011 Ivy League championship. Princeton came into the championship weekend as an underdog after losing in the regular season to Harvard, which hosted the conference championships. The Tigers took the early lead on day one and fought off a furious charge by the hosts to swim away with the program's third straight Ivy League title.

Princeton defended that title last season with a wire-to-wire victory at Denunzio Pool, an effort that was bolstered by a strong freshman class. He also helped a group of five reach the NCAA Championships, where Princeton earned All-America honors in both individual and relay events, and also placed 23rd as a team.

Dalton, who spent two seasons helping build up the men’s and women’s swimming teams at George Washington University, replaced Jamie Holder, who was named the head coach at Georgetown during the summer of 2010.

"I am beyond excited to be a part of the Princeton swimming and diving family,” said Dalton upon his hiring. “I am extremely grateful and honored by the opportunity to work with Coach Orr. The Princeton swimming and diving program is one of the best in the country, both in the pool and in the classroom. I look forward to recruiting future Tigers, developing current student-athletes and helping Coach Orr continue the tradition of success at Princeton."

Dalton was in charge of recruiting at George Washington and brought in the largest back-to-back recruiting classes in program history. His 2010 class included multiple Junior National qualifiers, a state record holder and a German Junior National champion. That squad included a three-time Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week and the second-highest freshman scorer at the 2010 Atlantic 10 championships.

While he spent his coaching time working with all aspects of the program, his primary focus was on the sprinters and stroke specialists. He was also instrumental in the strength and conditioning program, and that work translated to 16 new school and three new conference records. David Zenk won three conference titles during Dalton’s time while setting five school records and recording an NCAA qualifying time in the 200 back.

Dalton also focused on work in the classroom. The 2009-10 George Washington women’s team was ranked in the Top 5 in team GPA for the second straight semester. The men’s team was one of 60 NCAA programs to produce a GPA of 3.0 or better last spring.

Dalton, a four-year letterwinner at James Madison, began his coaching career with his alma mater. In one season, he helped the Dukes to a seven-win improvement as a team and nine new individual school records.

Dalton was a four-event finalist (100/200 breast and 200/400 IM) at the Colonial Athletic Association championships. As a senior captain, he was awarded the Steven H. Miller Award for Leadership and Dedication to the team. Dalton led the Dukes to a third-place finish at the C.A.A. championships, the highest team finish for a non-scholarship program.

A native of Sydney, Australia, Dalton has been trained by some of the top coaches in his home nation, including Australian Olympic head coach Gregg Hodge, fellow Olympic coach John Carew and Olympian Georgina Parkes.