10 Points MentionedFive individuals and the 1968 state championship team have been inducted into the inaugural class for the East L.A. College track and field hall of fame.
They were honored at the hall of fame banquet and reunion of champions held in the school’s Ingalls Auditorium-Edison Center for Performing Arts.
Santa Monica Police Chief Jacqueline Seabrooks, who ran cross country and track for the Huskies in 1980 and 1981, was the guest speaker. She ran a leg on the record-setting 1,600 relay team and was a state qualifier in the 800. She also qualified for state in cross country.
ELAC kinesiology instructor Lonnie Teper served as master of ceremonies.
Louis Augustine, Floyd Jeter, James Bates, James Butts, Sylvia Mosqueda and coach Ray Smith were the individual inductees.
Augustine, who was honored posthumously, was the school’s first national champion. The Jefferson High School grad ran 14.9 seconds to win the 120-yard high hurdles at the 1950 national junior college meet inPhoenix.
Jeter, who prepped at Roosevelt and was the first black to receive a track scholarship from USC, was a two-time state champion (1953 and 1954) in the high jump at ELAC. His mark of 6-9 ranked second nationally. He represented the U.S. on a Goodwill Tour that included stops in England, Germany, Ireland and Scotland.
Bates followed a stellar prep career at Manual Arts by winning state championships in the 100 and 220 in 1958 and 1959. He ran a career-best 9.5 in the 100 and tied the state meet record of 20.7 in the 220. He would earn a scholarship to USC.
Butts was the state triple jump champ and set a state record in 1970 with a mark of 50-3½ . The Fremont product earned a scholarship to UCLA where won the 1972 NCAA triple jump title. He was a silver medalist at the 1976 Montreal Olympics.
Mosqueda was a three-event state meet champion.
She won three events at the 1986 state meet, taking the 800 in 2 minutes, 6.1 seconds, the 1,500 in 4:18.2 and the 5,000 in 15:58.2. Her 1,500 and 5,000 times remain national records. She was also the 1985 state cross country champion, running a course record 17:06 that stands.
The San Gabriel product achieved more stardom at Cal State L.A.
Smith had the distinction of winning an NCAA title as an athlete and a coach.
He won the NCAA mile while attending UCLA and also played baseball for the Bruins.
He coached at Torrance, L.A. Jordan and Huntington Park highs before arriving at ELAC in 1947. He also coached cross country and was an assistant in football, basketball and baseball. He coached 11 state track champions and 29 All-Americans. He led six other teams to top five finishes.
The 1968 state champions were led by sprinters Chris Watkins (Manual Arts), Daniel Moore (Fremont) and Monty Turner (Washington), middle distance runners Art Martinez and Dave Loera (both of L.A. Wilson), high jumper Steve Lang (Fremont), relay man and shot putter Clarence Davis (Washington) and relay man Willie Williams. Turner, Davis, Loera and Martinez ran a national record 3:13.3.
Davis was also a running back for the Western State Conference champion football team. He went on to play at USC and in the NFL for the Oakland Raiders.
