When a team overcomes illness and injury to compete in a tough tri-meet, it's admirable.

When a team overcomes illness and injury to beat one team and come one race away from beating the other team in a tough tri-meet, it's more than admirable, it's pretty damn impressive.

The Harvard women's track team (11-2) showed its depth and resolve this weekend at Gordon Track when it defeated Yale with 58 points to the Elis' 26.5 and came in a close second to Princeton, which scored 63.5 points.

"Considering they've been hit with the same sickness that the men have, the women did very well today," Harvard Coach Frank Haggerty said.

Challenged by some of the strongest competition it has seen this season, the Crimson turned in some of its best results of the year.

Harvard's star sprinter Meredith Rainey won the 400-meter run with her best time of the year (54.12 seconds) and captured the 200-meter run in 24.90.

"She's running a little ahead of where she was last year," Haggerty said "She's training differently."

Beth Pfefferle and Jackie Ball both achieved their personal bests in the 800-meter run with times of 2:13.29 and 2:14.23, respectively.

Freshman sensation Cathy Griffin broke her second record in the 20-1b. weight with a toss of 49-ft., 8 1/2-in. and won the shot put, throwing 44-ft., 6 3/4-in.

Triple jumper Rita Raju won the event with an 11.34-meter leap, the best jump of her career. Party Min placed third in the 55-meter hurdles, finishing in 8.49 seconds--also a personal best.

Suzanne Jones notched her own personal best in the 3000-meter run in 9:40.91, placing second.

The Crimson is gearing up for more tough competition when it travels to Cornell next weekend to compete in the Heptagonal Championships. Practices will be less strenuous as Harvard prepares for the ten-team meet and tries to improve its health.

"If we're a little healthier," Haggerty said, "it's wide open."