Varsity Squash Team to Meet Yale In Match to Decide League Crown

In 1959, Yale won the national squash title only to lose later to a determined Crimson squad, 6-3. This year Harvard won the nationals over two heavily favored teams; at 3 p.m. in Hemenway the varsity will meet an undefeated Eli team, and veteran Coach Jack Barnaby professes to be worried.

He really needn't be: the chances are quite good that when seniors Paul Sullivan, Doug Walter, and captain Roger Wiegand walk off the courts with the rest of the squad, Harvard will have its tenth straight victory of the season and a string of wins stretching back two years.

Yale's strength lies in its top men. At number one, national semi-finalists Vic Niederhoffer and Ralph Howe will clash in a "thinking man's" game. Howe, a strategist like his Harvard opponent hasn't lost an intercollegiate match in two years; both players have recovered from their losses at Detroit and will be up for this match. Niederhoffer easily beat Jim Zug in a recent league contest, however, and should come through with a win for Harvard.

Morris, Hetherington Clash

Playing number two for Yale is the man who finished second behind Howe in the intercollegiates last year--Bob Hetherington. The Yale senior, who lost to Niederhoffer in the national singles competition last Friday, will meet the Crimson's Bill Morris. At number three on the ladder, Yale's top-notch George West will face Lou Williams, who won two crucial five-game matches in the national team championships.

The next three men will be playing their last game for Harvard. Paul Sullivan gave the varsity a big boost with his win over Canada's Dave Brock in the team finals last Saturday. Doug Walter, although seriously hurt, came back to win in the finals after the match score had been tied 2-2. And captain Roger Wiegand, who was too sick to play in the nationals, will be ready to lead his team again against the Elis.

Harvard's strength and depth is particularly evident at the bottom of the ladder, where the undefeated Terry Robinson, John Thorndike, and Allen Terrell are expected to win.

The last two Harvard-Yale contests were decided by only one game; in 1961, the Elis came out ahead 5-4, but last year the varsity won "a homeric victory" when John Francis came back in the last match with a dramatic win. A capacity crowd will watch today's clash.

The freshman squash team, with a 9-4 record for the season, also faces Yale at 3 p.m. today in Hemenway. Competing for Harvard will be Dinny Adams, Peter Brooks, Steve Simpson, Larry Rand, David Benjamin, Robin Howard, Bill Weld, Tim Carter, and John Pratt.

In other squash action, Harvard's "Red team" (Niederhoffer, Morris, Walter, Thorndike, and Terrell) is certain to win the Massachusetts Squash Racquets Association league title. Ben Heckscher '57 and Jim Zug of the Business School head the two Harvard Club of Boston teams in the league.