Harriers Fall to Yale; Weather Hurts Squads

The Harvard track teams fell to Yale in New Haven Saturday in the worst weather conditions of the season that the teams have had to endure.

"We came in really prepared, but Yale was even more prepared," Co-Captain Paul Mayer said. "They came in really pumped up, and the rivalry was intense."

The loss to Yale drops the Crimson men's record to 1-3 overall (0-3 Ivy).

Harvard knew that Yale would be tough to beat. The Elis have nationally-ranked long distance runners who won the Heps in cross country. But Yale turned out to be even stronger than it looked. "They were better than we expected," Mayer said.

"Harvard suffered from the 'intangibles' factor," Mayer said. "The intangible advantage of being able to run on a track that is comfortable and to have a home crowd can make a difference."

The weather conditions involved a severe combination of sleet, rain and snow. Mayer, who placed second in the 100m and third in the 200m, described what it was like running against the wind in the harsh conditions.

"When I ran the 400m relay in pelting sleet," Mayer said, "I thought I died and went to hell in New Haven, Connecticut."

Despite the disappointing outcome, the Crimson had some commendable performances, especially from freshman Jon Mee who took the 400m. In the throwing events, James Russell took first in the hammer throw. "James is a guy you can consistently count on to win," Mayer said.

In the jumping events, Chris Sullivan won the high jump with a leap of 6-ft., 8-in. "Chris jumps best when the meet is emotionally intense," Mayer said.

The women's team also fell to Yale, but it was a closer meet. The Crimson women swept the intermediate hurdles. Sophomore Meredith Rainey won the 200m, 400m, 400m and mile relays. In the 400m, Rainey took on the worst conditions of the meet and beat the competition by several strides.

The hottest news on former Crimson runners is the fourth place finish in Sunday's Olympic Marathon Trial by Harvard alumnus Paul Gompers, a Marshall scholar who graduated last year. Gompers is now the alternate on the Olympic marathon team.