First Varsity Crews Both Seeded Over Cornell in Eastern Sprints

Harvard's heavyweight varsity crew is looking for its third straight Eastern Sprints victory Saturday--and competition is mighty slim.

And the varsity lightweights are seeded first to break Cornell's three-year winning streak at the Worcester regatta.

Preliminary heats on Lake Quinsigamond begin at 8:45 Saturday morning. A record number of 75 boats from 16 colleges have entered this year's twenty-first Sprints championship. Races will be over a 2,00 meter course--about a mile and a quarter.

The Harvard heavyweight varsity has put on exceptional showings in all of its races so far this year and enters the race today undefeated.

Cornell is seeded second, with Pennsylvania third and Brown fourth. Last weekend at Philadelphia the varsity whipped Penn by an easy two and a half lengths. Harvard also took Brown by a little less than one length in its opening race of the season three weeks ago, but heavyweight Coach Harry Parker still counts on the Bruin squad as a tough one to beat.

Cornell, seeded second, also enters the Sprints undefeated. The Big Red have been "improving quite rapidly" in recent weeks, according to Parker.

The varsity heavies will face M.I.T., Syracuse, Yale, and Navy in their morning qualifying heat.

The traditionally strong Cornell lightweight varsity, champions for the last three years, is also coming to Worcester undefeated this spring, but is seeded second to Harvard.

Harvard's two varsity crews are the only Crimson shells seeded to take first place in the finals, although the junior varsity heavies and first freshman lightweights have more than a good chance to come home victorious by the end of the afternoon.

The junior varsity lightweights, with a 1-2 record, are seeded fourth in their race, behind Cornell, M.I.T., and Princeton.

Ted Washburn's first freshman heavyweight boat is seeded second behind Pennsylvania, to whom it lost last weekend by a fairly convincing gap.

Washburn sees the race as a "sheer teeth-gritting test of strength," and he been working with his squad all week, trying to improve power.

The undefeated first freshman lights are co-seeded with Cornell for first place.

Regatta officials at Worcester expect more than 10,000 spectators, mostly college students, for the races.

Other crews participating include Columbia, newcomer Northeastern, Boston University, Rutgers, Georgetown, and Wisconsin.