Harvard Oarsmen Sprint to Princeton... ...Radcliffe Crews Seek Eastern Titles

The Radcliffe varsity heavyweight crew goes for its fourth consecutive Eastern Championship this Sunday at Lake Quinsigamond, Worcester. The improved lightweight varsity, meanwhile, will try to stop a powerful B.U. squad from gaining its second lightweight title in as many years.

Despite an undefeated season and a winning streak dating back to early 1973, the heavies are seeded third behind Yale and Wisconsin, each also possessing unblemished marks this season.

"It's just that none of the big teams have raced each other, and so the seeding is all on hearsay," captain Katy Moss explained yesterday. "It won't make too much difference anyway. They'll all come up against each other in the finals."

The Seed Displeases

Lightweight coach Peter Huntsman, himself a member of the seeding committee, said yesterday, "I'm not really pleased about the way the seeding committee worked. They just took a quick coaches' poll. And solely on the basis of the comparative margins, I think Radcliffe should have been seeded first."

Last year, the coaches put Radcliffe second behind Yale. But the 'Cliffe crushed the Elis by two lengths, while dark-horse Wisoncsin placed second, one length astern of the 'Cliffe.

"There was no way Yale or Wisco would win last year," said cox Nancy Hadley, who was at the helm of all three of the Radcliffe championship crews. "And this year I'd like to see the same amount of concentration, of work, and of purpose and desire as the last three years. To make it four in a row would be the dream of dreams."

A Rolling Stone

Radcliffe has not been tested this year, Moss said. "Even with Princeton, there was no question who would win. But every other year we've had to come from behind at least once to win, and you learn something from that," she added. Moss will be sidelined this week with a knee problem.

The heavyweight J.V. is also undefeated this season, but has been seeded behind Dartmouth. "You know it's just going to make us work harder and make the margin bigger," four-year veteran and rookie stroke Anne Robinson explained.

The J.V. is seeking its second consecutive J.V. eight title. In 1974, it entered and won the varsity four event.

The novice heavyweight four, which smashed MIT by a solid two lengths yesterday, will be entered in the varsity four division.

"This season they've gone from total novices to a really strong boat," coxswain Lizellen LaFollette said yesterday. "This last week has been very impressive, and I think the confidence is there."

The heavy four event is considerably tougher in the sprints than the regular season, because many colleges with mediocre eights place their best oarswomen in fours, hoping to do better than they would otherwise in the varsity eights. "I think we'll row our best, and we'll make a good showing in a strong field," said LaFollette.

The lightweight varsity, meanwhile, will face the same strong B.U. crew which overpowered it by four lengths three weeks ago on the Charles. However, neither Sandy Constantine nor Jane Clark was in the shell on that date.

Equal Representation

"I didn't think that race was indicative of our strength, and I'd like to have a more representative race this time around," Huntsman said yesterday. "B.U. is an exceptional crew, and it'll take a terrific race, but I think we have it in us to beat them," he said.

All season the lightweights have had a tough time finding lightweight crews to race, and they have wound up facing mostly heavyweight teams.

"This race will give us a good chance to see how we can do against real lightweight competition," number two Jane Roy said. "And it'll give us a chance to really compete with B.U."

The lightweight varsity is seeded second in a field of five. "It's going to be an interesting race," Huntsman promised.

Problems With Lines

The lightweight J.V. has been split into two fours for the sprints. "Both crews have really started moving well in the last week, despite a lot of rigging problems," he explained. "They'll be there."

Varsity Heavyweight coxswain Hadley described the 'Cliffe's situation yesterday after practice: "We've always approached the sprints with the deepest intensity, and this time I think they'll all want it as badly as I do."