By Ron Smith
September 17, 2024
 
(SANTA BARBARA, Calif.) In a ceremony at the Cabrillo Pavilion on Monday evening, Westmont alumna Elysia (Hodges) Mitchell (2012-15) was inducted into the Santa Barbara Athletic Round Table Hall of Fame. The track star ran for San Marcos High School in Santa Barbara before bringing her talents to Westmont in the fall of 2015.
 
Mitchell was a two-time NAIA Champion for the Warriors in the indoor track and field 600 meter run, winning the event in junior and senior years of 2014 and 2015. She finished as national runner-up in the outdoor 400 meter dash (2013, 2015) and in the outdoor 4x400 meter relay (2014).
 
"Elysia brought a national caliber element to the women's program that expanded the vision of her teams," reflected Westmont's Track and Field head coach Russell Smelley. "Her conference and national success put her on a par with Dennis Savage (1967-1970) as the two most outstanding track and field Warrior athletes of all time. Both of them were exemplars of racing to win, which they did regularly."
 
She qualified to compete in eight national championships (four indoor championships and four outdoor) during her collegiate career and each time left with at least one All-American title. She earned All-American honors in four different indoor events and three outdoor events. The indoor events consisted of the 400 meter dash (2012), the 600 meter run (2013, 2014, 2015), the distance medley relay (2014) and the 4x400 meter relay (2015).
 
In outdoor events, Mitchell collected All-American awards in the 400 meter hurdles (2013, 2014), the 400 meter hurdles (2012, 2015) and the 4x400 meter relay (2013, 2015).
 
"I love to compete, challenge myself, and strive for the best. Oh and winning, I love to win," Mitchell told the Noozhawk. "The final stretch of the 400 is undeniably grueling, and nothing feels better than passing by all your competition because there was a little bit more oomph left in the tank."
 
Unsurprisingly, Mitchell's name continues to dominate the Westmont Women's Track and Field record book. Nine years after her graduation, she remains the record holder in the 60 meter, 200 meter and 400 meter dashes, the 600 meter run, the 400 meter hurdles, the 4x200 meter relay, the sprint medley relay and the distance medley relay. At the end of her collegiate career, she also held the record for the 4x100 meter relay  and was tied for the record for the 100 meter dash.