Coach Jaakko Mikkola will valiantly send his varsity cross-country team in quest of its first win this afternoon, but the harriers will be bumping into the best team in the East--Rhode Island State--and reasonably strong Holy Cross in a three-cornered meet at Brookline's Franklin Park.

The Crimson, which last week took a 21 to 34 trouncing by Tufts, will again run without Joe Leeming. The varsity captain cut his foot on a piece of glass a week ago last Monday and doctors yesterday said the injury still was not healed.

When the three teams take off at 3:45 p.m., these will probably be the Crimson runners: Dave Gregory, Dave Cairns, John Pankey, Owen Edmonds, Thayer Scudder, Al Masters, Ronnie Berman, Dick White, Clark Coggeshall, Bill Baker, John Lovewell, and Dick Everett.

Although the 12 men will all race in the meet, only the first seven finishers will count in the team scores. The run is four and a half miles.

The Freshmen will also be seeking their first win when they also meet the same two teams at the same hour. Paul Judy and Arlon Adams are the top two '53 runners.