Ha! Ulen's varsity swimming team hit the water this week in preparation for a tough season against the top teams in the East.

Although the season opener against MIT is a month away, Ulen, freshman coach Bill Brooks, and new diving coach Charlie Batterman have already taken a tally of leftovers from last year's team and promising new men.

Captain of the 1949 varsity is senior Joe Fox, a sprinter, who started in the 50 and 100 yard freestyle events and as anchor-man in the 400-yard relay last year.

Yale, Army, Dartmouth, and Princeton always have strong teams, according to Ulen, and this year they'll be even stronger, judging by last year's swift freshman aggregation from these schools. Brown and Columbia are expected to be considerably better than usual.

Leading sprinters behind Fox are Shep Brown, Mort Hull, Robert Tolf, and Norm Watkins.

440 Slot Open

Of primary importance in Ulen's preseason planning is the filling of the 440 slot left vacant by the graduation of Ted Norris and 1948 captain Jerry Gorman. Foremost competitor for the middle distance is Doug Kenny, a heldover from last year, with Pete Biere and Paul Tobias showing well in practice.

Win Baylies, Guy McKhann, and 1948 freshman captain Lowell Sachnoff were also named as promising freestyle performers.

In the backstroke, Ulen has Tom Woods and John Steinbardt from the 1948 team, with sophomores Hugh Hartwell, Joe Baublis, and Ron Dorris ready to step in. The coach named Larry Ward as an outstanding breaststroke prospect.

Among the top divers left from graduation are Gordon Wier and Win Briggs.

Bill Brooks hasn't had much time to look over the freshman aspirants, but praised the fine work in practice sessions of freestylers Dave Hedberg and Ron Huebsch, medley-swimmer Dick Fouquet, and breaststroker Ken Emerson