Penn, Villanova Picked In IC4A's Run Today

The Intercollegiate Amateur Athletic Association track championships begin today in Princeton's Jadwin gym, and nearby Philadelphia will have a strong influence on what happens in the meet.

The University of Pennsylvania, and their cross-town rival Villanova appear to have the strongest shot at taking the championship. Villanova's Wolverines took their fifth title in a row last year, outdistancing second place Penn 42-21. The Quakers tied with Pittsburgh for second.

Harvard is sending a ten-man contingent to compete in the event, but doesn't pose a serious threat this year.

Last year, Harvard finished seventh.

"We're sending people whom we think have a chance to score," assistant coach Ed Stowell said last night. "I think the field event guys have the strongest shot, but the rest of the squad could pick up points, too."

Among the field events men are pole vaulter Jim Kleiger, and triple jumpers Kevin Benjamin and Vince Vanderpool-Wallace. Vanderpool-Wallace, who came to the squad just a month ago, placed third in the Heps last Saturday.

The Crimson also appears to be strong in the mile, where John Quirk, Jim Hughes and Mark Connolly will all be running.

In the two mile, Ric Rojas will be the Crimson's sole representative. Mike Koerner, who has been fighting Rojas for first place all season, continues to suffer from the flu which kept him out of the Heps and will not be running.

"The meet revolves around the question of whether the pupil can beat the teacher, whether the assistant coach can beat the coach who taught him everything he knows," Harvard coach Bill McCurdy said of the Villanova-Penn rivalry.

Penn's head coach Jim Tuppeny was formerly an assistant to Villanova's Jumbo Elliott.

Eighty-seven teams belong to the IC4A, but not all are sending competitors. Schools from throughout New England. New York and Pennsylvania will be represented today, as well as some southern and mid-western schools like Maryland and Notre Dame.

Navy, which placed second to Penn in the Heps, could threaten the dynamic due from Frank Rizzo's town. Traditionally strong Maryland is having an off-year and should not be a factor. The College Park squad was trounced earlier in the season by Navy.

Manhattan, another strong track school in past years, is not a threat this season.

Among the other Crimson thinclads competing today are Bailee Reed in the dash. Dewey Hickman in the hurdles and Bob Clayton in the 880.