Symbolizing excellence in women's squash, the Howe Cup belongs in its present form to the pages of a Princeton recruiting brochure. Engraved on the Cup, in neatly printed letters, are nine of the Tigers' winning teams and the years of their victories.

Reading the list is a bit monotonous. "Princeton," "Princeton," "Princeton," and "Princeton" are engraved beside the years 1973-76. Then, as if to lend an air of credibility to the title--to show the unenlightened that there is some competition and that this isn't one-team tournament--the fifth champion listed is Yale.

Dynasty

The Elis provided only a brief interruption of the Tigers' dominance. "Princeton" appears for each of the next four years, 1978-81, glaringly attesting to the fact that the Tigers' dynasty only temporarily wavered.

Soon another, different name will be emblazoned on the Howe Cup beside the year 1982--Harvard. Based on the Crimson's performance at New Haven last weekend, it seems clear that intercollegiate women's squash has entered a new era. The Tigers are no longer unopposedly entrenched on top. Harvard should be competitive with Princeton--and perhaps even dominate the former champions--for a long time to come.

Witness the Crimson's youth. Freshmen Mary Hulbert and Diane Staley have monopolized the top two positions on Harvard's ladder this year, and captain Courtney Stimpson, playing at number six, is the only senior on the seven-man varsity squad. Then there is the nucleus of the team, a talented corps of sophomores and juniors, including Jackie Corrigan, Laura Kaye, Lisa Harrison, and Lili Pew.

Put together a pair of committee freshmen phenoms, reinforce then with a solid group of veterans, and you have a winning combination.

Ten Years Coming

It took the racquetwomen ten years to do it, but on Sunday they brought home their first National title. To call the victory a fluke, or to compare it with Yale's solitary win in 1977, is to belittle an accomplishment which is likely to be repeated in the near future. Harvard will be in the thick of the fight next year, and the year after, and the year after. At least.

To say the Crimson came, saw and conquered last weekend is to sell them short. They didn't conquer the opposition, they annihilated it. Aside from sweeping their six matches against the best teams in the country, the racquetwomen individually won 37 of 42 matches. No opponent walked off with a straight-game victory against a Harvard player, but coach Jack Barnaby's charges did just that in 27 individual matches.

In other words, the racquet women didn't just beat their rivals from Princeton, Yale Dartmouth, Penn, Trinity, and Brown. They humiliated them.

Neat and Sweet

For Harvard it was a sweet victory indeed. The finality of the outcome left no room for doubt about the superior team in the nation. For Stimpson, who for three years played on a second-rate team, Sunday's triumph was the ultimate accomplishment in her squash career. Like Tom Murray cradling the Beanpot as he skated around Boston Garden a year ago, Stimpson's sipping of champagne from the Howe Cup following her team's 6-1 devastation of Princeton will be long remembered as a high point in Harvard athletics.

Although it probably meant the most for Harvard's captain, the Crimson's first national championship precipitated a massive celebration from the entire team.

Amid the hoopla surrounding Stimpson's tournament ending victory Sunday afternoon. Harvard coaches Barnaby and Priscilla Pool together walked away from the courts towards the lobby.

"Something tells me they're happy," Barnaby said wryly, as his team's celebration echoed in the background "Noooooo," Pool replied.

Then she smiled.