"I think we made some good progress on them during the winter, but we won't know for sure until it's over and the points are tabulated," he said.

Winthrop's basic strength lies in the women's events, Richards said, noting that he expects the 'Throp to grab titles in women's basketball and squash.

If Winthrop House can pull ahead after the winter season, it should be able to hold on during the spring events, which begin this week with the volleyball tournament.

"We'll have a serious softball team," he said, adding Winthrop should also be very strong in tennis.

Losing the Cup wouldn't have any dramatic effect on the house, Richards said, adding, "They break for summer as soon as they award the Cup, so we'd have three months to recover. But I'm not going to worry because we're not going to lose. We've got too many good women to lose."

Quincy, in third place after the fall season, is also depending heavily on the strength of its women athletes, John Thompson, house athletic secretary said. Participation in intramurals is down in the house this year, but the women have been particularly successful, he added.

"I think there will be a swing this winter so that Winthrop House will pull out in front," Thompson said, adding, "It looks like it's going to be Kirkland chasing Winthrop and us chasing Kirkland."

South House can't be counted out of the intramurals picture yet either, after finishing in fourth position last fall.

Angel Leon, South House athletic secretary, says he's confident that South will overtake Quincy with strong performances in men's squash and women's tennis.

"My sophomore year we finished thirteenth and Adams House finished twelfth with twice as many points as us," Leon said, adding, "This is the first year we've actually been competing with a full house."