Tennis Team Strong, But Princeton Is, Too

The Harvard tennis team that heads for the warm weather and dry courts of the South tomorrow is a mixture of styles, temperaments, and abilities that could produce just about anything from second place to fifth in the Eastern Intercollegiate Tennis League.

A championship seems a bit out of the question this year for one reason: Princeton. The Tigers have rolled up 34 straight wins in league play over the last three seasons, and this year's sophomores are so good that two returning lettermen have been beaten off the team.

Harvard isn't that good but this Crimson squad isn't likely to play dead for anyone, including Princeton. There is strength at the top with Frank Ripley and Chum Steele, strength in the doubles lineup, and great depth, with five of last year's top seven players being joined by at least two high-calibre sophomores.

Probably the top man will be Frank Ripley, number two on last year's squad, and a finalist in the New England Intercollegiate championships for the last two years. A big-serve-and-volley player, Ripley took teammate Paul Sullivan to three sets in the New England finals before losing last year.

But Ripley is by no means sure of his job. Chum Steele, a junior with enormous experience and a strong "big game," will press for the top spot all season long. Steele is also probably the squad's premier doubles player--he and Princeton's Keith Jennings are a nationally ranked team and he and classmate Dean Peckham won the New England Indoor Championship last month. The two juniors will probably fill the top doubles spot this year.

Sophomores Clive Kileff and Dave Benjamin are currently backing up the top two. Kileff, a Southern Rhodesian, was playing at Forest Hills before he entered college, and should be a strong number three man if he doesn't move up the ladder. Benjamin, last year's top freshman player, is working back into form after a winter of squash. Since he relies on his ground strokes, he may take a while to work into shape.

Plenty of Players

Captain Sandy Walker, a steady, smooth backcourt specialist, and rangy Bob Inman, a powerful shotmaker and a fine doubles player, round out the top six just now, but there will be plenty of challengers. Peckham, Tom Jones, and a brigade of sophomores all might be in the running. Vic Niederhoffer, number three last year, won't make the Southern trip but will be playing after vacation.

In doubles, Peckham and Steele are the top combination at the moment, with Ripley and Inman an uneasy second team--both players are more accustomed to playing backhand--and Kileff and Benjamin third.