Ripping Time for RPI

The expressions on the faces at left and right reflect with accuracy the feelings of the student engineers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute toward their favorite game. What football is to most great state universities, what basketball is to many a confined city college, hockey is to RPI, a small-town but select technical school in upstate Troy, N.Y. Relatively unknown in the sports world a decade ago, Rensselaer in the last 10 years has developed a first-class artificial rink, a top-flight coach, local enthusiasm and the native skills of some of its Canadian students into what is currently the No. 1 college hockey team in the East. The team is shown here in its recent tournament with Princeton, Harvard and Canada's University of New Brunswick. RPI won.

The RPI Bench watches anxiously as Princeton threatens goal in a game that RPI finally won 11-3. At far end of bench is volatile, 41-year-old RPI coach, Ned Harkness, who took over direction of the Engineer hockey squad 10 years ago, four years later led them to the NCAA championship. At right: Harvard and second-place winner, New Brunswick, fight for puck at center ice.

TWO PHOTOS

JAMES DRAKE

PHOTO

JAMES DRAKE

DIMINUTIVE WINGMAN TREVOR KAYE (5 FEET 5), RPI'S LEADING SCORER, PLEADS FOR A VICTORY OVER NEW BRUNSWICK TEAM