If consistency is the mark of greatness, then the Harvard women's track team is indeed a great team.

The Crimson finished fourth in the Heptagonal Track and Field Championships held at the Naval Academy this past weekend. This equaled its fourth-place finish at this winter's Heps.

Nine teams competed in the weekend-long meet--the eight Ivy League schools and Navy. Finishing ahead of the Crimson (87 1/3 points) were Cornell (141 1/3), Dartmouth (113) and Brown (95).

Heps, which is the equivalent of an Ivy League championship, is the most significant team event of the track season.

"It is definitely the biggest team meet," sophomore Karen Goetze said. "It is the culmination of the team track season."

Harvard's finish came as no shock to Goetze, though she did have her doubts as to how the Crimson would fare in an outdoor meet (the winter meet is held indoors.)

"We have no real strengths outdoors, so I was somewhat unsure of how we would finish," Goetze said. "The other teams are very strong. Cornell didn't have many first-place finishes, but they had many seconds and thirds. Dartmouth is very strong in the distance events."

Many Harvard athletes turned in outstanding individual performances.

The relay teams fared particularly well, finishing first in the 4x400, second in the 4x100, and fourth in the 4x800.

Goetze--a member of the victorious 4x400 team--was Harvard's only individual winner, finishing first in the 800 meters with a time of 2:11.48. She also finished fourth in the 1500 meters.

Other strong Crimson performers included junior Amanda Williams (second in the 200 and 400), Heather Maclennon (third in the long jump and fifth in the triple jump), co-captain Shireen Boulos (third in the 200), and Nathalie Campbell (fourth in the 200).

Though its fourth-place finish would indicate otherwise, Harvard may indeed have slipped somewhat since the indoor season. At the winter Heps, Harvard finished just one point out of third place. This time the Crimson ended up eight points behind the third-place Bears.

"Things didn't go as smoothly as in the winter," Goetze said. "We finished farther back this time."

Among the problems that plagued the Crimson were the loss of heptathlete Ailey Penningroth to injury and an uncharacteristic no-height from top high-jumper Stacy Barber.

Still, the Crimson had much to be pleased about.

"I was happy, and I think the team was," Goetze said. "Placing fourth is good, considering the strength of the competition."

So for the Crimson, the status quoproved to be an impressive and satisfactory accomplishment, maintaining its position under slightly more difficult circumstances.

Some Crimson individuals are also competing in the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference championships at George Mason in two weeks. That will be the final chance for Harvard athletes to qualify for the NCAA championship meet, which begins on May 31 at the University of Tennessee.