Harriers Oppose UMass, Friars in Tri-Meet

When the Crimson harriers oppose Providence and UMass in a tri-meet this afternoon at Franklin Park, the result may bear little resemblance to a friendly old afternoon jog, especially if Crimson mentor Bill McCurdy has anything to say about the matter.

"Providence brings in all these Irish imports," McCurdy said yesterday, "so I think that our best chance would be an IRA rebellion. It appeals to my devious nature to unite with the IRA."

More of the Same

McCurdy has good reason to be wary of today's opponents, for not only did the Friars and Minutemen finish first and second, respectively, in the IC4A's last year, but most of the talent from those teams has returned for another year.

"The Friars are all back," McCurdy said woefully. "They suffered no significant losses, and apparently came up with another great schoolboy power from Ireland. While UMass lost two All-Americans, they still have a lot of quality people around."

As for the Crimson, virtually everyone is healthy, with but two exceptions: Bill Kraus and Captain Bill Okerman. The latter came down with a cold over the weekend, and McCurdy will not decide whether he will participate until this morning.

Psychologically, however, the Crimson is in great shape. "The squad is in fantastic spirits," McCurdy said, "probably because the sun came out. As a result, we had a hilarious time in practice. Really, though, I've seen no signs of giving up. We were inspired rather than crushed after Northeastern."

Inspired or not, the Harriers will have their work cut out for them this afternoon, so it might not be such a bad idea to employ some alternate strategy. "I'd call Kennedy," McCurdy said, "but I don't know whether he'd be sympathetic."