Unbeaten Crimson Swimmers Test Yale's 99-Meet String

It happens every spring.

The Yale swimming team--fastest thing in the water-regularly crops up at the end of the Crimson's season and spoils a perfect record. For the third straight year the Crimson swimmers are undefeated (8-0) going into their final meet. And for the third year running, they will finish second best, both in the meet and in Eastern League standings.

The varsity meet begins at 4:30 p.m. in the Indoor Athletic Building. At 3:15 p.m., Bill Brooks' once-beaten Yardlings take on the Eli freshmen, who are riding a string of 102 victories.

Yale brings north a magnificent record of 99 straight dual-meet victories, a poolfull of collegiate, national, Olympic, and world record-breakers, and a murderous intent. Word has it that Bob Kiphuth's varsity, which hasn't lost since Army submerged it in 1945, welcomes the opportunity to score Number 100 against the presumptuous Crimson.

For some years now, the Crimson has been stealing some of the Blue's fire by terrorizing everybody else in the East. And further, Yale is still avenging itself for those upsets in 1937 and '38 (the last time Harvard defeated Yale in swimming). In '37, the Crimson ended a 163-meet Yale streak here in Cambridge.

Holding Nothing Back

Kiphuth hopes to break a bevy of pool, meet, and Yale University records, in addition to Harvard's winning string, before he leaves town. He's holding nothing back on this one--it's Number 100, it's the last meet for a host of seniors, and above all, it's Harvard.

He's got his fastest combinations going in every event. With Kerry Donovan in the sprints, Dick Thoman in the back-stroke, Dennis O'Connor and Stanton Smith in the breast-stroke, plus some in- credibly fast relay teams, the Elis may well surpass more than a few marks.

May Score in Teens

Coach Hal Ulen said Kiphuth--who was never one for holding his boys back--may try to keep the Crimson in single-digit figures. But, even if the Elis were to sweep every first place, which they may do, it is probable that the Crimson will score somewhere in the 'teens. Ulen's squad should pick up seconds in at least three events--the dive, the 100-yard free-style sprints, and the 200-yard breast-stroke--and there's an outside possibility for an upset in anyone of them.

The 3-meter dive gives the Crimson its best chance for a first. Here, two of the East's best-Kenny Welch and the Crimson's Pete Dillingham--will be competing. Welch has defeated everyone this season except Navy's Owen Davies; Dillingham has defeated everyone, including Davies.

Chances are slimmer in the other events. In the 100, Dave Hedberg must face Frank Chamberlain and Donovan--who is the fastest Yale sprinter in almost ten years. In the 200-yard breast-stroke, Ralph Zani and Ken Emerson will have to beat record-breakers Smith an O'Connor.

World-record-breaking freestyler John Marshall probably won't swim--but that makes little difference. Yale has a couple of middle-distance free-stylers named McLane and Moore who have recently been outracing their Australian teammate.

The freshman meet might be close, and could conceivably produce an upset. The Bulldog freshman aces are sprinter Hendrik Gideonse and John Phair, a good middle-distance swimmer