Benjamin Leads Varsity Harriers to Fourth Win

Captain Dyke Benjamin turned in another winning performance yesterday, leading the cross country team to victory over Columbia and Penn in a triangular at New York's Van Cortlandt Park. The final score, 27-49-55 was not as decisive as it could have been, however, since not all the varsity performances were as consistent as Benjamin's.

The undefeated Crimson captain encountered his first serious competition of the season in Penn's sophomore star Dick Tracy and Cuban-born Jose Iglesias of the Lions. Two years ago, Iglesias ran Harvard ace Pete Reider into the ground on this same Van Cortlandt course, and Benjamin's 26:01 yesterday was 50 seconds slower than the 1956 winning time. But Iglesias, hampered by injuries and "upper-classitis," could do no better than third yesterday.

But the one-two punch provided by sophomore Jed Fitzgerald was missing. Fitzgerald dropped back from Benjamin, his usual running-mate, and finished seventh, behind Crimson runners Willie Thompson and Mack Brown. Brown, an unpredictable runner, finished ahead of both Ed Martin and Jim Schlaeppi, who have been among the top runners in past races. Buster LaFrance ran tenth in the scoring.

The shakeup in varsity performances can be partly explained by Van Cortlandt Park itself. Poor footing and the gruelling "Heartbreak Hill" are a challenge to runners used to the smooth and rolling Franklin Park course. And the unusually warm, dry day may have caused many of the unimpressive varsity performances. But inability to master Van Cortlandt could be a serious problem, since both the Heptagonals and IC4A meets will be held there--and against several teams for whom the Park is a "home course."

In the freshman meet, Marc Mullin led the Yardlings to a routine 19-59-59 victory over Penn and Columbia's yearling squads. With only a day's rest between yesterday's meet and the race against Andover Wednesday, Mullin's unexciting 15:47.2 over the three mile course (Course Record: 14:30) cannot be rated against his other outings.