Thinclads Host 34th Heptagonal Today

Today at 1 p.m. in the ITT, Harvard hosts the Heptagonal Indoor Track Championships for the first time in the meet's 34-year history. The other teams competing include Army, Navy and the rest of the Ivy League.

The Heps held for 27 of the last 28 years on the weary wooden track of Cornell's Barton Hall, traveled to Dartmouth in 1979 only to return to Ithaca last year as part of the rotation which will now allow the meet to move every year.

If Harvard wins tomorrow, it will be the Crimson's first Heps victory since 1970. Harvard has won more Heps than any of the other nine teams, taking nine of a possible 33. Army, with eight championships, ranks a close second.

Last year, several meet records fell, not only in the running events where the debut of metric distance in 1979 opened the way for new marks, but also in the 35-lb, weight and in the high jump. Competition in the field events should be strong again this year, with Penn and Dartmouth highly favored.

Two Crimson runners, junior Adam Dixon and sophomore Eric Schuler, will be defending their 1980 Heps titles. Last year Dixon, in only the second year of the 1500-meter event, broke teammate John Murphy's 1979 time of 3:48.14 by one second for a new Heps record. Today Dixon will try to lower his time of 3:47.8 in order to win the Jack Moakley Trophy, awarded to the winner of the 1500-meter run.

In the 3000-meter race last year, also only in its second year with the Heps, Schuler hit the tape at 8:21.8, enough to win the event but still five seconds shy of the 1979 Heps record set by Andy Fischer of Cornell.

Navy's Leo Williams will also be defending his high jump title tomorrow. Williams' leap of 7 ft. 3/4 in. is a current Heptagonal record, and the sophomore has already topped 7 ft. 4 in. this winter. Gus Udo, now back to full strength after a leg injury will be Harvard's answer to Williams.

The 400-meter run will pit defending 1980 Heps champion Jeff Hill of Penn against Harvard's co-captain Mare Chapus, who holds the University record in the 440 yd. run as well as the metric facility secord. Hill's 48.79 is a Heptagonal record, but Chapus reached 48.5 seconds last December, setting a University record and should be tough to beat.

If Dixon were entered in the 1000-meter event today, he'd certainly give Princeton's Brad Howe a run for his money. Howe, who will be defending his 1980 title in the 1000 also holds the Heptagonal record with a time of 2:26.3.

Unfortunately, Howe will be allowed to run away with the 1000 again--even though his best time is seven seconds slower than Dixon's American record time of 2:19.80, set last week at the Big Three Tournament here at the ITT.

Dixon also stands a good chance of getting the much coveted Outstanding Performer award which last year was awarded to Dan Predmore of Cornell, who set the Heptagonal record in the 5000 meter run (1 4:18.5) and anchored the record-setting distance medley relay. Dixon, in addition to the 1500, will be running one or two relays.