Harvard's soccer team will begin the quest for its seventh Ivy League title in a decade with a game at Columbia this afternoon.

What sort of team do the Lions have? According to the Columbia Spectator, Coach Joe Molder feels "the team's success will depend almost exclusively on how much, and how fast the sophomores learn to play as a team with the returning lettermen. This team has much more talent than last season but will face the challenge of inexperience."

Linguists well versed in the euphemy of sports lingo would interpret the above analysis to mean, "Boy, are you going to get clobbered this year."

The Lions were the doormat of the Ivy League season last year with an 0-6-1 record, and lost most of their lettermen from that inept eleven. The only experienced players on the 1964 roster are All-Ivy halfback Steve Robinson and right wing Waldemar Schulz. In the team's first two games of the season Schulz broke the fibula in his right leg and Robinson dislocated a shoulder. (He has continued to play despite this handicap.)

Columbia opened its season with a 3-0 victory over Wagner, but since then has lost to Kings Point, 5 to 3, and Princeton, 3 to 1.

Harvard should win in a romp this afternoon. In its tuneups for the League campaign, the Crimson shellacked Tufts and Boston University, and then was tied 3-3 Wednesday by M.I.T. Harvard did not look very impressive in the contest with Tech, but nonetheless the team has too much talent for the Lions to handle today.