1974 Track: Banks and Jefferson Bring Home Gold Again

Willie Banks of Oceanside and Elijah Jefferson of Crawford offered a historic footnote to the 56^th state meet in Bakersfield.

Banks and Jefferson we’re the first from the San Diego Section to win successive state championships since Chula Vista’s Tim Danielson in 1965-66 and only the second and third from the area to repeat since the first state meet in 1915.

Banks’ weekend started in disappointment when he was fourth in his heat in :14.1 in the 120-yard high hurdles, but while he tied the San Diego Section record with six others, only three in each heat qualified.

Banks was a qualifying sixth at 23-4 ¾ in the long jump and then essentially ended the competition with a 50-foot, 9-inch triple jump that broke Banks’ meet record of 49-1 and was 33 inches further than the second-place qualifier.

Banks jumped 50-7 in the Saturday final, again almost three feet further than the runner-up jump of 47-8 ¾.  He was eighth in the long jump at 23-7 ½.

“I’m happy I won but I’m disappointed with my (triple) jump,” Banks told writer John Nettles.  “I guess I was disappointed with my long jump finish and I felt sort of depressed, but I still felt I could have done better.”

Banks later posted career bests of  24-2 3/4 and 51-3, respectively,  in the Golden West Invitational in Sacramento.

Jefferson, after scorching the Bakersfield track with a record-tying :09.4 in the 100-yard dash in Friday trials, beat the field again on Saturday in :09.8, but did not run the 220.

“It’s great to win this thing two years in a row,” said Jefferson after officials huddled for almost 10 minutes to determine if Jefferson or Mike Simmons of L.A. Carson had won. “I had a great start and felt I was ahead all the way, but I could hear them coming”.

Jefferson felt a twinge in his leg when he qualified at :21.5 in the 220 Friday night and did not in the run in the final.

5/3/74

EASTERN LEAGUE TRIALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Morse’s Donald Moore ran the 440 in :48.3, fifth fastest in County history. Leaders:

Moore’s teammates Michael Patrick (:50.2) and Jim Juhl (:50.7) ran 1-2 in another heat.

Crawford’s Elijah Jefferson was an eased-up winner in the 100 and 220 in :10 and :21.8.

GROSSMONT LEAGUE TRIALS, @GRANITE HILLS

El Capitan’s Curt Hampton set a league record with a 64-5 ¾ shot put, bettering the 63-4 by Granite Hills’ George Brown in 1967.

The eighth qualifier in the shot reached 51-2 ¾, good enough to win several league meets.

One of the shot putters was El Cajon Valley’s Mark Malone, fourth at 53-8 ½, and first with a discus toss of 165-7.

Tom Smith of Granite Hills had the day’s fastest mile, 4:21.2.  Tim Earle of Granite Hills won a heat in 4:23.9 and Monte Vista’s Bill Bunting led with a 6-6 high jump.

—Mike Grein of Poway was a double winner in the high hurdles (:14.6) and broke his school record (:19.9) with a :19.7 clocking in the lows, but Mission Bay won the Coast League dual meet, 64-63.

—Willie Banks’ 23-foot, 6 ½-inch long jump, 47-1 triple jump, and :15.1 in the 120 high hurdles was more than enough in Oceanside’s 92-44 win over Carlsbad.

5/6/74

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE TRIALS, @CASTLE PARK

Sweetwater’s Jim Frankson found the usual breezes at the Trojans’ track to his liking, running wind-aided :09.6 and :21.4 in the 100 and 220.

“I wasn’t aware of the wind before the race but I knew there was some,” said Frankson.  “There wasn’t that much wind,” suggested Red Devils coach Gerry Smith.

John Sylvester of Hilltop (:22.2 220, :51.2 440) and Scott Young of Bonita Vista (:14.8 high hurdles, :20 low hurdles) also were double winners.

AVOCADO LEAGUE TRIALS, @ESCONDIDO

Willie Banks won his high hurdles test in :14.8 and Oceanside teammate Mosley doubled in the 100 (:10.2) and 180 low hurdles (:20.4).

COAST LEAGUE TRIALS, @SAN DIEGUITO

Mike Grein of Poway led all hurdlers with wins in :14.9 and :20.3. Bregy of Poway won a 440 in :51.5 after taking first in an 880 race in 2:05.8.

5/9/74

SOUTHERN LEAGUE FINALS, @RAMONA

Christian scored 59 points, Ramona, 55, and San Diego Military 50 in a meet in which 10 records were set and three were tied in the 3 classes.

Most notable was Ramona’s Bob Hunt, who cleared 6 feet in the B high jump, bettering a 32-year-old mark of 5-11 ½ by Gordon of Brown Military in 1942.

Donald Tavie of San Diego Military was a triple winner with a :10.2 100, :23.1 220, and 20-0 ¼ long jump.

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE FINALS, @CASTLE PARK

Jim Frankson of Sweetwater ran :09.7 in the 100-yard dash, breaking the record of :09.8 by Bill Huntales of Oceanside in 1937 and Bill Massey of Chula Vista in :1964.

Frankson also won the 220 in :21.8. but Scott Young of Bonita Vista won three events and was part of a fourth.

Young  prevailed in both hurdles events in :14.6 and :19.8, high jumped 6 feet, 4 inches, and ran a leg on the Barons’  440 relay, first in :43.6.

John Sylvester of Hilltop won a photo finish with Montgomery’s Clint Bradburn in the 440 in a career best :50.2.

EASTERN LEAGUE FINALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Kirk Pfeiffer and Elijah Jefferson were double winners for Crawford.  Pfeiffer at 4:18.5 and 9:11.6 in the mile and two-mile and Jefferson at :09.8 and :21.8 in the 100 and 220.

Pfeffer bettered the long race record of 9:13.6, set by Lincoln’s Otis Martin in 1966, and was challenged in the shorter race by teammate Phil Hendricks, who was second in 4:18.6.

Donald Moore of Morse won the 440 in :48.9 and anchored the Tigers’ mile relay team to a 3:20.6 victory, fastest in the Section this year, nosing out Crawford, which ran 3:21, ahead of Patrick Henry (3:22) and Lincoln (3:22.6).

Quinard McDonald was on the Morse relay team and also won the 880 in 1:55.7.

WESTERN LEAGUE, @MESA COLLEGE

Wayne Saxton was a triple winner :15.3 high hurdles, :19.8 lows, and 21-6 ½ long jump for Kearny, which also profited from Ron Means’ :50.5 440.

Charles Bussey of Kearny won the 100 in :10.0 but ran out of gas, as did the rest of the 220 field, which mistakenly raced for 235 yards, thanks to incorrect lane markings.

Richard Paxton of University hurled the shot 56-7 and discus 151-6 and Steve Mowry of Madison ran the mile in 4:20.5 and two-mile in 9:20.4.

AVOCADO LEAGUE FINALS, @VISTA

Willie Banks took the state lead with a 50-foot, 6 ½-inch triple jump, was second to teammate Kenny Brooks’ 22-10 long jump with a 22-6½ leap, and tied the hurdles record of :14.4 by Oceanside’s Mike Swaim in 1963.

Tim Woods of Vista ran 4:18.1 in the mile and 9:22.4 in the two-mile and Bobby Rhodes of Vista was a 10-seconds winner in the 100 and in :22.4 in the 220, and anchored the Panthers to a :43.2 photo finish win over Oceanside in the 440 relay.

GROSSMONT LEAGUE FINALS, @GRANITE HILLS

The first five finishers in the 880 were timed in 1:58.1 or better and won by Granite Hills’ Tom Smith in 1:56.1.

Smith earned a difficult double victory when he came back to win the mile in 4:17.7, nipping Tim Earle (4:17.9) of Monte Vista.

El Capitan’s Curt Hampton won the shot put at 63-4 and Mark Malone of El Cajon Valley the discus at 173-3.

COAST LEAGUE FINALS, @SAN DIEGUITO

Mike Grein of Poway won the high and low hurdles in :14.6 and :19.8 and Gary Hernandez of Mission Bay was first in the distances in 4:22.8 and 9:33.6.

5/18/14

SAN DIEGO SECTION TRIALS, @VISTA 

Kearny’s Wayne Saxton and Oceanside’s Willie Banks were the stars in the afternoon-evening meet, the latter offering Class B and C competition.

Banks took the national lead in the Triple Jump at 50 feet, 10 1/4 inches, and led long jumpers with a qualifying 23-5 3/4.

Saxton ran the 120-yard high hurdles in a wind-aided :14.3 and the 180 lows in a clean :19.5, and ran a leg on the Komets’ 440 relay.  The Komets’ time of :42.6 was best of the day.

Kearny did not finish the relay in the Western League finals but had been byed into the trials.

5/24/74

SAN DIEGO SECTION FINALS, @VISTA 

Willie Banks tripled, but Crawford, getting more than just an expected double win from Elijah Jefferson, won the team championship.

Keith Miles was second in both hurdles races and triple jump (lifetime best 46-9 ¼), and participated in the 440 relay (second) and mile relay (third).  Kirk Pfeiffer won the two-mile in 9:08.6 and was second with a lifetime best of 4:16.8 in the mile.

Crawford scored 40 points outdistancing Morse (29), Oceanside (27), and Kearny (16).

Jefferson tied the meet record of :09.6 in the 100 and won 220 on a full curve in :21.5.

Morse had four individual winners:  Donald Moore, :48.5 440; Quinard McDonald, 1:55.9 880; 440 relay, :42.2, and mile relay, 3:19.7.

Banks won the 120 high hurdles in :14.4, long jump at 23-7 ¼, and triple jump at 49-1 ½.

LADIES MAKE DEBUT

Girls’ track and field, which was introduced as a CIF-sanctioned sport in the dual meet season, was celebrated with a national record by Mission Bay’s Kathy Devine.

Devine pushed the eight-pound shot 51-1 ¼, breaking the record of 48-8 ½ by a girl from Gresham, Oregon, in 1971.

Janice Wiser of La Jolla won the 100 in :10.8 and 220 in :24.5 and Beth Howell of San Dieguito doubled in the 440 and 880.

5/31/74

56^TH STATE TRACK TRIALS, @BAKERSFIELD COLLEGE

BOYS

Marks in trials are for overall standing, not for individual finishes in heats or field events, i.e., Donald Moore was first in 440 heat but fifth overall.

6/1/74

56^th STATE TRACK FINALS AT BAKERSFIELD COLLEGE

BOYS

GIRLS

FIRST STATE TRACK FINALS, @BAKERSFIELD COLLEGE