line and stopped six inches inside the white
chalk line.

There was a moment's pause as the crowd and the players, stunned by the
play, grasped what had happened. Then swelling into a roar, there was
one word chanted over and over--"_Polaris--Polaris--Polaris_...."

The _Polaris_ unit had reached the finals of the Academy tournament.

* * * * *

During the intermission Charlie Wolcheck, unit commander of the
_Capella_ crew, walked over to the refreshment unit behind the
grandstand where Steve Strong, Dr. Dale and Commander Walters were
drinking Martian water and eating spaceburgers.

"Afternoon, Commander," saluted Wolcheck. "Hello, Joan, Steve. Looks as
though your boys on the _Polaris_ are going to meet their match this
afternoon. I've got to admit they're good, but with Tony Richards
feeding passes to Al Davison and with the blocking of Scott McAvoy--"
The young officer broke off with a grin.

"I don't know, Charlie," Commander Walters said with a wink to Dr. Dale.
"From the looks of Cadet Astro, if he ever gets his foot on the ball,
your _Capella_ unit will have to go after it with a jet boat."

"Why, Commander," replied Wolcheck, laughing good-naturedly, "Tony
Richards is one of the finest booters I've ever seen. Saw him make a
goal from the sixty-yard line from a standstill."

Steve Strong waved a Martian water pop bottle at young Wolcheck in a
gesture of friendly derision.

"Did you happen to see the play in the first period?" he boasted.
"Manning took a perfect pass from Astro and scored. You're finished,
Wolcheck, you and your _Capella_ unit won't even come close."

"From what I hear and see, Manning seems to be a little sore that he
can't make all the scores himself," grinned Wolcheck slyly. "He wants to
be the whole show!"

Strong reddened and turned to put the empty bottle on the counter, using
it as an excuse to hide his feelings from the commander and Joan. So
Wolcheck had observed Manning's attitude and play on the field too.

Before Strong could reply, a bugle sounded from the field and the group
of Solar Guard officers returned to their seats for the final game of
the tournament between the _Capella_ and the _Polaris_ units.

Out on the field Mike made his usual speech about playing fair and gave
the cadets the routine instructions of the game, reminding them that
they were spacemen first, unit-members second, and individuals third and
last. The six boys sh