Radeliffe honor lay in shreds Sunday as its fencing team completed a season of resounding defeats at the New England Women's Intercollegiate Fencing Meet.

The championship silver cup, which has sat in the Radeliffe Gym three of the last five years, went to Brandeis. The cup was donated by Radeliffe in the days it dominated the strip and other women's colleges shivered at the sound of 'Cliffe steel.

But this season, opposing teams from Boston College, Jackson Jr. College, Westbrooke Jr. College, University of Rhode Island, and Rhode Island College had the Cliffies wriggling on their blades in every match.

The Cambridge girls' best showing came Sunday, when they took one out of nine bouts from Jackson, two from R.I.C., and a surprising four from Westbrooke's crack team.

Four Musketeers

Despite bleak scores, the year -- a building one -- has not been all despair.

Captain Sarah Smith has led the Zorroesses with a graceful and clean style. At first hesitant to press her point, she attacked well last Sunday, outthinking as well as outfencing her opponents. Miss Smith was a semi-finalist at the Rhode Island Individual championships last month.

Sophomore Kerry Gruson, another of Radcliffe's hopes for the future, would do much better with some practice. She has a creditable one-two attack, but is short on speed and experience.

Jean Martin was the greatest surprise in her first season fencing. She still tends to slash wildly in her parries, but she can hold on with a bulldog tenacity.

The team's fourth member senior Cory Seidman, attacks in the mosquito style. There is annoying buzzing somewhere around a vital area, but one is never quite sure where.

Despite its defeats, the Radcliffe team left expert heads nodding. "You look like a ballerina among a herd of bulls," one observer noted.

The team is the envy of many schools for its coach. Mr. Powers, a salon fencer of the French School who despises the hit-and-run methods of most competition fencers. With more time and practice perhaps the advantage of the bull fighter ever the bull will tell.