Powerful Track Team Opens Season Tonight

Meet Time: 6 p.m.

Harvard's track team opens its indoor season against B.U. in Briggs Cage tonight, boasting the same intimidating strength in the long distance and weight events that carried it to an undefeated dual meet record and second places in the Heptagonals and IC4A's last year.

The Crimson will sorely miss the talents of Jim Baker, last year's team captain, who ran everything from the 1000 to the two-mile with equal brilliance. But virtually everyone else from the long distance corps is back, and two talented sophomores will provide even more depth in the long races than last year's team had.

Cross country captain Doug Hardin and junior Royce Shaw--Harvard's record-holders in the two-mile and mile--have both recovered from injuries they sustained late in the cross country season after winning practically every Harvard meet between them, and will lead the fleet of long distance runners.

Pushing these two will be sophomores Jon Enscoe and Dave Pottetti, who was named an All-American for his 23rd-place finish in the NCAA cross country meet.

In the shot put, team captain Dick Benka is a good bet to successfully defend his Heptagonal and IC4A titles. The 6'6" 260 pounder--who placed third in the NCAA's last March--has already been throwing over 60 feet this year, and if he does it today, he will break his own University record.

Benka will receive support from sophomore Ed Nosal and seniors Charlie Ajootian and Bruce Hedendal. All three double in the 35-pound weight throw, and Nosal and Ajootian should make it another of Harvard's strongest events.

Ajootian came on strong at the end of last season--throwing over 60 feet--and took a fourth in the Nationals.

Encouraging

The return of junior Keith Colburn, who sat out most of last season with an Achilles tendon injury, is about the only encouraging aspect of Harvard's middle distance race picture. The Crimson's 600 and 1000 ranks were almost entirely depleted with the graduation of Jeff Huvelle, Dave McKelvey, and Trey Burns, but Colburn will be better than any of the three if he stays healthy.

The track team is being forced to hold tonight's meet in old Briggs Cage, which Coach Bill McCurdy thought he had escaped this year, because construction on the team's huge new bubble is not yet completed.

McCurdy says the delay of the completion of the bubble--which was supposed to be ready for the start of the season--has been an obstacle to the team's training and that consequently it will be less prepared than usual.

Press Job

But B.U. should provide a good opportunity for Harvard to iron out any wrinkles. The Terriers lost their one big star when hurdler Dave Hemery graduated last year. Hemery was a gold medal winner for Britain in the Olympics, setting a new world record in the 440 hurdles.

The only other strong performers on the B.U. squad are John Winskowicz--a 6'8" high jumper--and two good long distance men--senior Pete Hoss and a 4:09 sophomore miler named Naughton.

The meet concerning McCurdy now is Saturday's--against Harvard's perennial Heptagonal nemesis Army. In all likelihood, McCurdy won't even run Shaw, Hardin, Colburn, and Pottetti in tonight's meet to insure that Harvard is at full strength against the Cadets--defending Heps champions--this weekend.

Harvard will be weakest in the same events as last year--the hurdles and dashes--and also the pole vault, now that Steve Schoonover is gone. The high jump and long jump are still questions. Junior Jim Coleman has the potential to become a 6'6" or 6'7" high jumper this year. Harvard's three long jumpers--Bob Galliers, Skip Hare, and John Avault--are back this year and could be good, but Galliers and Avault have each been hampered by injuries so far.