Exam period--death for a Harvard Crimson sports reporter. There are no late-breaking stories. No one's hired. No one's fired. There are no scandals. Not even any leads for scandals. In fact, there aren't even any rivalries to hype, any big games--there are hardly any games at all.

Sports events come in dribs and drabs. Reporters compete to cover a game. A midweek game story becomes exceptional, a hockey weekend phenomenal. Stories take on a timeless quality: updates, previews and reviews.

So reporters have to turn to the tried and true: the files.

And so, in the tradition of Bill Clinton's State of the Union Address, here is a mid-season thumbs-up thumbs-down quickie report on the state of Harvard's winter sports teams.

Men's hockey: Good. 9-2-2 in the ECAC and 11-3-2 overall. Enough said.

Women's hockey: Good. With a strong freshman contingent led by forward A.J. Mleczko, the team has rebounded from a disappointing 1993 season. In an effort highlighted by an overtime win against Brown during the season's first weekend, the Crimson begin the second half of the season with a 3-2-1 Ivy League record.

Men's basketball: Fair. After seven straight losses, Harvard turned it around with a win against Dartmouth and find themselves in fourth in the Ivy League at 2-2 with 10 Ivy games left to play.

Women's basketball: Bad. The Crimson are 2-11 overall, winless in their last seven outings. They're currently dwelling in the Ivy League basement at 0-3.

Men's swimming: Good. Their stunner against fifth-ranked Florida gives them momentum for the second half of the season.

Women's swimming: Good. After a fast start, the Crimson have set the pace in the Ivy League this year going undefeated.

Women's squash: Good. Harvard got out of the gates early with a 3-0 start and looks to keep up the effort behind senior Jordanna Fraiberg and junior Libby Eynon.

Unfortunately, the files don't always come through. In fact, frequently the files don't exist.

A case in point is the men's squash team. After a strong performance December 5, Harvard looked unbeatable at 4-0 overall and 2-0 Ivy. The last we heard, they were gearing up for the USSRA Team Championships on January 8, 1993.

Our files are a little behind on some other sports, too.

Men's Volleyball: Good. 18-3 overall, 7-1 EIVA...in 1993.

Women's Volleyball: Bad. A 1-4 Ivy start will be tough to overcome--even if it is a year later.

Men's Track: Good. Based on the Heptagonal Indoor Preview from February 25, 1993, the Crimson was in good shape. After all, Bill Bland won two events in the H-Y-P meet. Then again, he also graduated in June.

Wrestling: Bad. Harvard was roughed in 1992 after a 37-6 drubbing by Cornell and 0-5 record which put in the Ivy cellar.

Women's Track: Good. Looking at the only roster available, circa 1991-1992, the team should have a strong group of juniors and seniors on which to rely.

Men's and women's fencing: Good. Yale didn't look to tough in its 1992-1993 roster.