In quest of Ivy pride, the Harvard men's track team finished second by a heart-breaking two points in the Big Three meet held Saturday in New Haven, Conn.

The Tigers of Princeton nosed out the Crimson, 72-70. Host Yale mustered a mere 17 points to nail down third.

In no less than nine of 16 events, a Princeton athlete snatched first while a Harvard trackster grabbed second. The margin of the Crimson's loss was thus all the more frustrating.

The Tigers swept the mile and the two-mile relays, edging the Harvard squad in both races. The Crimson thinclads managed only four firsts over the course of the competition, although they captured 12 second-place finishes.

Harvard swept the top three positions in the two-mile run, as Peter Fitzsimmons edged cronies Mark Meyer and Ed Sheehan with a solid 8:59 flat.

Flying High

Sola Mahoney registered an admirable performance, soaring to a 21-ft. 9-in. leap to grab the laurels in the long jump. Mahoney also took second in the triple jump.

Co-captain Geoff Stiles, returning from a hamstring pull, won the pole vault, clearing the bar at 14 feet. John Chafee notched the only other victory for the Crimson, blazing home in 1:56.3 to take first in the 880-yd. run.

On the whole, however, it was a day of near misses and disappointing seconds for the tracksters.

Snake Eyes

Star miler John Murphy had a disappointing afternoon, grabbing the third spot in the mile race, after losing a shoe, and falling just short of the 1000-yd. run, despite recording a 2:13.4, identical to the winning time.

PRINCETON 72, HARVARD 70, YALE 17 at New Haven, Conn.

Mile--1. Smith (P) 4:11.6;2. McNulty (H) 4:12.1; 3. Murphy (H) 4:13.1; Osbome (Y) 4:14.8.

440-yd. run--1. Carty (P) 51.1; 2. Frim (H) 51.4; 3. Nicodemus (H) 51.9; 4. Chambers (Y) 52.4.

600-yd. run--1. Libertelli (P) 1:13.6; 2. Dixon (H) 1:14.0; 3. Sherber (P) 1:14.5; 4. Spilsbury (Y) 1:15.0.