Light Crew Defends Haines Cup Crown Against Weak Navy Oarsmen on Charles

Harvard's lightweight crew should have little trouble extending its intercollegiate victory string to 13 when it races 2000 meters against Navy at 3 p. m. today on the Charles.

Last year Harvard won the Haines Cup race for the 12th consecutive year by downing Navy by nearly fourteen seconds.

On the basis of the two teams' performances this year, Harvard does not seem to have lost any of its superiority over Navy.

While both teams have four returning members from last year's varsity crews. Harvard's lightweight eight seems to have improved more than Navy's lights.

Last year Harvard routed Columbia in a dual meet and edged M. I. T. in a triangular meet in its first two races. In their first two outings this spring the Crimson lights have smashed Columbia and Rutgers in one race and Dartmouth and M. I. T. in another.

"This boat is amazing," said Harvard junior Kim Kiley-a varsity-boat member last year and this year-after the Crimson whipped M. I. T. and Dartmouth last Saturday.

"While last year's boat would get a good lead off the start, settle down a little during the body of the race, and then open up in the sprint, this boat just explodes off the line and keeps churning all the way," Kiley added.

Navy, on the other hand, has looked unimpressive so far this year. The Midshipmen have edged a weak Georgetown crew and lost by 5 seconds to Princeton. Princeton-which only beat Rutgers by four seconds-is apparently not even on a par with Harvard. The Crimson overwhelmed Rutgers by more than twenty seconds two weeks ago.

Harvard's undefeated junior varsity boat should also win easily. While the Crimson junior varsity has crushed all its opponents. Navy's junior varsity lost to Princeton's reserves before squeaking by Georgetown. The freshman light-weights will not race the Navy freshmen.