1973 Track: Jefferson and Banks Carry the Day in 55th State Meet

Elijah Jefferson went where no San Diego County athlete had gone in 45 years.

Willie Banks won an event that was known by another name when it was last contested 34 years before.

Jefferson became the first from the area since 1929 to win the 100-yard dash in the state track meet when he followed a wind-assisted :09.4 in the Friday trials with a :09.6w in the finals.

Banks’ 49-7 ¼ effort won the triple jump, an event not part of the meet since 1939, when it was known as the hop, step, and jump.

Twelve years and 14 days later, June 16, 1985, in Indianapolis, Banks set a world record of 58-10 ¾, a mark that was not surpassed for 10 years.

The  gold medals by Jefferson and Banks were the most for the San Diego Section since 1966, when Terry Rodgers of Hilltop (880), Tim Danielson of Chula Vista (mile), and Doyle Steel of San Diego (long jump) were individual winners.

Jefferson’s victory at  Community Stadium in Woodland—he would repeat in 1974—equaled Jimmy Willson’s 1929 triumph when Willson won the 100 (:09.8) and 220 (:21.4) and led San Diego High to the team championship at the Los Angeles Coliseum.

5/3/73

GROSSMONT LEAGUE TRIALS, @MOUNT MIGUEL

Greg Baer became the fourth Grossmont shot putter to reach 60 feet when his best attempt measured 60-10 ½.

Baer, who also won the discus preliminary at 164-7, sensed he was in for a good day.  “I thought I’d probably do well when my first throw went fifty-nine. I never do much on my first put.”

Baer’s father, Marlin Baer, was the Foothillers’ coach from 1956-68 and had another son, Brad, who became one of many in the school to throw at least 54 feet since 1950:

*Norris was granted an extra trial after the competition at the state meet 5/27/50 and reached 60-3.

Curt Hampton of El Cajon Valley was second to Baer with a toss of 60-1 1/2 and five other shotputters had marks of 51-7 or better.

EASTERN LEAGUE TRIALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Sophomore Elijah Jefferson won a head-to-head sprint matchup with Lincoln’s Lanard Morris, clocking :09.9 and :21.8 to Morris’ :10.1 and :22.1.

Jefferson, whose best 220 had been :22.4, caught and passed Morris on the turn and held serve down the long stretch.

Wally Henry of Lincoln won his heats, :14.6 in the 120-yard high hurdles, and :20.5 in the 180 lows.

5/8/73

AVOCADO LEAGUE TRIALS, @VISTA

Robert Mosley of Oceanside took three events, 120 high hurdles (:14.8), 180 lows (20-4), and long jump (22-4 ½).

Vista’s Bill Harvey sailed the discus to a meet record of 172-6.

5/11/73

EASTERN LEAGUE FINALS, @BALBOA STADIUM.

Danny Miller, a transfer from El Centro Central, ran strongly all season for Morse but in the shadows of Crawford’s Elijah Jefferson and Lincoln’s Lanard Morris, until today.

Miller set a meet record when he won the 220-yard dash in :21.4, extending his arms skyward and looking back at Morris (:21.8) and Jefferson (:21.8).

Jefferson meanwhile tied James Milton’s league record of :09.5 in the 100, nudging Morris (:09.7) and Miller (:09.8).

AVOCADO LEAGUE FINALS, @ORANGE GLEN

Humberto Barajas of Vista ran 4:24.2 and 9:33.4 for a mile-two-mile double and teammate Al McClure won the high jump at 6 feet, 6 ¼ and was second in the triple jump at 45-1 ½.

The Panthers’ Jay Semensow hurled the shot 57-11 ½, with teammates Cary Cotten (56-3 ¼) and Bill Harvey (53-6) following.

Willie Banks of Oceanside set a triple jump record of 45-6 ½ in the new event and the Pirates’ Robert Mosley won the 120 high hurdles in :14.6 and long jump at 23 feet.

GROSSMONT LEAGUE FINALS, @MOUNT MIGUEL

Greg Baer went 60-8 ½ and led a flock of shot putters that included El Cajon Valley’s Curt Hampton (59-9 ¾) and Jerry Barrows (57-11 ½), and Fahl (55-1/4) and Ehman (53-0), Baer’s Grossmont teammates.

El Capitan outscored Helix, 51-50, for the team title and led with 15 qualifiers for the Section trials. Granite Hills (36), El Cajon Valley and Grossmont followed the leaders with 32 points each.

SOUTHERN LEAGUE FINAL, @RAMONA

Donald Tavie ran the 100 in :10 and 220 in :22.1 to lead San Diego Military, which won to the team title with 61 ½ points to runner-up Mountain Empire’s 38.

Tavie’s 220 bettered the record of :22.4, set in 1965 by Ryan of La Jolla Country Day.

WESTERN LEAGUE, @MESA COLLEGE

Jim Geddes of La Jolla cleared 6-4 ½, breaking the record of 6-4 by Don Sing of Kearny in 1967 and Mike Breen of Clairemont ran 9:19.4 in the two-mile erasing the 9:19.8 by teammate Dale Fleet in 1971.

Aguirre of Madison tied Fleet’s 9:19.8 in second place.

Madison’s Bruce Girasole, defending San Diego Section 100 and 220 champion, and Kearny’s Ron Means were byed into the Section trials.

Girasole pulled up after 100 yards in the 220 and Means bailed after 50 yards in the same race.

Both were fighting leg muscle problems.

La Jolla’s Dan Carlsson, County leader at 1:55.8 in the 880, withdrew with a knee injury.

METROPOLITAN LEAGUE FINALS, @MAR VISTA

Jose Medina of Hilltop tripled with a :20.5 win in the 180 low hurdles, 21-7 long jump, and 6-3 in the high jump, edging Bethea of Castle Park on number of misses.

Mike Frankson of Sweetwater took the 100 in :10.1 and repeated with a :22.3 220.

5/18/73

SAN DIEGO SECTION TRIALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

Cold, windy weather was a surprising factor at a time of year when the elements favor the athletes.  Still, there were some moments.

—Danny Miller of Morse and Elijah Jefferson of Crawford tied the record of :21.4 in winning their respective 220 heats.

—Miller and Jefferson were :09.8 winners in the 100 heats.  Lanard Morris won a third 100 and third 220 heat in :09.9 and :21.6.

—Defending champion Bruce Girasole of Madison couldn’t go because of a persistent leg injury.

—Vista’s Cary Cotten improved by more than two feet with a 58-11 ½ shot put and teammate and defending champion Jay Semensow made the cut, seventh at 56-8.

—Mike Malec of Clairemont (4:14.9) and George Pullen of Grossmont (4:15.9) won mile heats.

—Oceanside’s Willie Banks, nursing a hip problem, missed in the 120 high hurdles and long jump, the latter in which Banks was defending champion, but qualified with one jump at 44-7 in the new event triple jump, won by El Capitan’s Bill Tobert at 45-0 ½.

5/26/73

SAN DIEGO SECTION FINALS, @BALBOA STADIUM

The wind was slightly more than the allowable 4.473 miles per hour but it took nothing away from Elijah Jefferson’s sensational 220-yard dash, in which Jefferson refused to be run down by Lincoln’s Lanard Morris and Morse’s Danny Miller.

The Crawford sophomore raced to the lead on the Balboa Stadium curve and fought off his pursuers down the stretch, finishing in :20.9, holding off Morris (:21.1) and Miller (:21.2) in one of the great sprints in County history.

Jefferson also won the 100 in a meet-record tying 9.6, with Morris (:09.7), Miller (:09.8), Lincoln’s Leonard Moore (:09.8), and Sweetwater’s Mike Frankson (:09.9) chasing.

BAER MARKET

Grossmont’s Greg Baer, the County leader and holder of the County’s third longest shot put in history at 60-10 ½, was third and did not qualify for the following week state meet.

Baer’s best was 59-0 ¾, third to the 60-9 1/2 by El Cajon Valley’s Curt Hampton and 59-2 ¼ by Vista’s Cary Cotten.

Lincoln won its eighth team champion in the Section’s 13 seasons with 36 points, with Vista, 26, Morse and Oceanside, 24 each, and Oceanside, 23 following.

With Wally Henry leading off, Lincoln also won the 440 relay in :41.8 and Henry  won the 180 low hurdles in :19.1.

Oceanside’s Robert Mosley tied the 120-yard high hurdles record of :14.1 and won the long jump at 23-7 ¾.  The Pirates’ Willie Banks set a record of 48-7 ¼ in the new event triple jump.

Vista’s Al McClure high jumped 6 feet, 7 inches, same as La Jolla’s Jim Geddes, who won on fewer misses.  Vista’s Bill Harvey won the discus at 177-5 ½, and Clairemont’s Mark Malec clocked a 4:12.5 mile.

6/2/73

55TH STATE TRACK TRIALS, @WOODLAND COMMUNITY STADIUM

6/2/73

55TH STATE FINALS, @WOODLAND COMMUNITY STADIUM

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