Lions and Tigers Leading the Pack In Ivy Sports Safari

NEW YORK--Princeton has retained its position as the most successful Ivy League team in overall competition in both men's and women's sports, but Columbia has moved into the top position in formal conference competition.

The Tigers had a .581 winning percentage in overall men's competition to edge out four close rivals--Cornell (.570), Pennsylvania (.564), Harvard (.562) and Columbia (.560). In women's action, Princeton edged out Yale in a tight two-way battle, posting a .649 winning percentage, while the Elis finished at .647. Princeton has held the top spot in men's sports for four straight years and in women's play for two.

In formal round-robin league play, however, the Tigers dropped to second after three straight years in first place as Columbia finished with a .586 winning percentage to Princeton's .575. Harvard finished third at .511.

The Lions' move to the top completed a four-year move from last place. They were third last year and sixth two seasons ago.

Yale and Columbia were the most-improved teams from last season in overall competition, the Elis increasing their winning percentage by 65 points to .522 and the Lions 60 points to .560, while Barnard, Columbia's sister institution, showed the most improvement in women's sports with a rise of 43 percentage points to .597. In league play Dartmouth showed the biggest gain, going up 80 percentage points to .444, while Brown improved 49 points to .419 and Columbia 45 points to .586. 1978-79 OVERALL WON-LOST RECORD   Won  Lost  Tied  Pct Princeton  137  98  7  .581 Cornell  129  97  2  .570 Pennsylvania  115  88  7  .564 Harvard  135  105  3  .562 Columbia  107  84  2  .560 Yale  128  117  5  .522 Dartmouth  120  113  5  .515 Brown  70  115  1  .379

1978-79 IVY LEAGUE WON-LOST RECORD--LEAGUE COMPETITION   Leagues  Won  Lost  Tied  Pct. Columbia  8  40  28  2  .586 Princeton  11  47  34  6  .575 Harvard  11  45  43  2  .511 Cornell  10  41  43  2  .488 Pennsylvania  10  35  40  4  .468 Yale  11  39  48  3  .450 Dartmouth  9  35  44  1  .444 Brown  8  31  43  0  .419

1978-79 IVY LEAGUE WON-LOST RECORD--LEAGUE COMPETITION   Leagues  Won  Lost  Tied  Pct. Columbia  8  40  28  2  .586 Princeton  11  47  34  6  .575 Harvard  11  45  43  2  .511 Cornell  10  41  43  2  .488 Pennsylvania  10  35  40  4  .468 Yale  11  39  48  3  .450 Dartmouth  9  35  44  1  .444 Brown  8  31  43  0  .419