Injuries Plaguing Freshmen Harriers; Hunt Anticipates Hard Dartmouth Meet

Mike Koerner and Rick Jurgens, despite injuries, remain the top two runners on the freshman cross country team.

Koerner has been troubled by tendonitis in an ankle, but nevertheless, was the top Crimson finisher in last Saturday's loss to Cornell, 27-28. Unfortunately, Koerner's ankle suffered further injury in that meet, and it is now doubtful whether or not he will be able to run Friday against Dartmouth.

Jurgens, who finished seventh overall, was running in a meet for the first time since October 4. He has been bothered by tendon problems. Coach "Pappy" Hunt emphasized that it takes time for these conditions to really heal, and that with every two steps forward in that direction, they seem to take one backward.

Also Tough

The Dartmouth meet this Friday is likely to be another tough one. The Indians have three strong runners in Eric Potter, Steve Shirey, and Pete Dinnon. Potter has won most of Dartmouth's races, and Hunt feels he is as good as anyone that Harvard has on its freshman team.

The Big Green recently was edged by Brown 27-28, while the Crimson defeated Brown by the same score. Much will depend, of course, on the condition of Koerner and Jurgens. If one of them cannot run, the Yardlings will really have to scramble to win the meet.

Hunt has been making every effort to use these two runners whenever possible in order to get them ready for the Big Three meet on Nov. 1. The team to beat there is Princeton, which has fielded one of its strongest freshmen teams in many years. They have beaten all opponents, but Hunt does not feel Princeton has been really tested yet.

Potential

Andy Meltzoff and Rick Barton are two freshmen with a great deal of potential. Their main problems appear to be a lack of experience and a reluctance to start at a fast pace. Hunt said that one thing freshmen teams must learn is not to fall behind early in the race.

Meltzoff ran the mile in 4:17 in high school, and displays this speed at the end of the freshmen races, but at that point it is too late to catch the top men. This point was particularly clear in the Cornell meet where Meltzoff passed several runners near the finish line, but could not top the leaders.

Good Year

Though this year's team has experienced some difficulty. Hunt feels it is the best team in a couple of years. The problem is, that many other colleges also have the best teams they have had in many years.