A close five-way contest is expected to replace a long-standing duel between Harvard and Army in the 24th Heptagonal track championships tonight at Cornell. Pennsylvania is favored in the meet.

In addition, Cornell and Princeton pose threats to the two perennial winners in the ten-team meeting of Ivy League schools and service academies.

"It looks as if we're going to have to scramble for everything we can get and hope for a little luck," head coach Bill McCurdy said yesterday. He, too, considers Penn the favorite.

The Farther the Better

McCurdy is looking for strong performances in the distance events. Tom Spengler and Jon Enscoe have both clocked 4:05:8 this year and should lead the mile run along with Cornell's Don Alexander, who was runner-up in 1970.

Harvard's Dave Elliott, who came off a foot injury last week to defeat the Yale and Princeton runners, appears a strong possibility in the appears a strong possibility in the 1000-yard run along with Army's Bill Henry and Penn's Julio Piazza.

In the shot put, the Crimson's Joe Naughton will receive stiff competition from Dartmouth brothers Ted and Wayne Moody, Navy's Jim Bloom, and Penn's Ed Markowski. Bloom has bettered 58 feet; the others are 55-footers.

Despite his team's favored position, Penn coach Jim Tuppeny looks for a strong showing by Harvard. "The Crimson is always at its best in the Heps," he said yesterday. He expects the meet to go down to the relays.

Harvard has taken the title for the past two years. Since 1962, either the Crimson or the Cadets have won.