COACHING SYSTEM TRIUMPH SEEN IN RELAY VICTORIES

It was Harvard night and Nurmi, Ray and Plant night at the B. A. A. In the midst of the events of these super-athletes, the three Crimson relay teams marked up three decisive victories. The University two-mile team provided the climax of the meet by making a Harvard-Yale record in leading Yale to the tape by a third of a lap. The University milers slipped in just ahead of M. I. T. and the Freshman mile quartet piled up a fifty yard lead over the Yale Freshmen. Miller surprised the packed Arena when she shot across the finish of the 40-yard dash second to Loren Murchison.

Tibbetts Took Lead at Start

In the two-mile relay Greeley of Yale had the pole, but Tibbetts took the lead in the first half-lap. Greeley remained close at his heels the whole distance. Chapin took the baton from Tibbetts in time to start with a three-yard lead over Multer. A couple of bursts of speed in the last two laps enabled Chapin to hand a fifteen-yard lead to Cutcheon. Cutcheon ran a fast, steady six laps in which he widened the gap over Gibson. Haggerty, well known to local track fans, was cheered wildly as he rushed farther and farther ahead of Laughlin, the Yale anchor man. He broke the tape in 8 minutes 5 2-5 seconds, a new Harvard-Yale record. Half an hour earlier the world's champion Georgetown two-mile relay team had been held to 7 min- utes 56 1-5 seconds on the slow B. A. A. track, making Georgetown the better team by the small difference, for the two-mile, of 9 1-5 seconds.

Allen started the University mile by gaining five yards over Howlett of Tech. This was increased slightly by Robb, who raced Jeppe. Kent with eight-foot strides increased his lead over Bateman to 25 yards. Those thinking the University would win easily reckoned without Leness, who aroused great excitement on the last leg by cutting Lundell's lead down to five yards. The time was 3.34 1-5.

Brayton and Luttman in the Freshman relay had all they could do in the first two legs to keep on even terms with Dodd and Perry of Yale. But W. M. Taylor raced Fairbanks into the ground, and A. H. O'Neil outclassed Echolz, finishing the relay in 3.38 2-5.

Victories Have Double Significance

For the University the victories in the B. A. A. games have a double significance. In the first place they are victories, but what is more important, they are the results of the coaching system begun four years ago by W. J. Bingham '16 and carried on by Coach Eddie Farrell and his assistants, Jakko Mikola and D. F. O'Connell '21. Those who two and three years ago watched the efforts of J. W. Burke '23 to win board track relays by making up the losses of undeveloped teammates could not fail to be impressed at the results gained this year by a large number of fairly good runners. At the short relay distances Haggerty was the only man running at the B. A. A. who could have competed successfully with Burke. But the combination of an exceptional half-miler such as Haggerty with Tibbetts, Chapin, and Cutcheon produced a result which could not have been obtained at a time when the coach's attention was directed solely toward a few stars. It is no accident that there were twelve competent relay men running at the B. A. A. While some made their mark in prep school, all have improved their running since coming to the University. Cutcheon, Chapin, and Robb who never ran before their Freshman year owe their success solely to three years' work and the constant attention and encouragement of the University's coaches. Although many of the field events are too weak to give the University a well-rounded track team at present, the success in the running events, due to many fairly good men, appears as a first triumph of the coaching system