Golden reunion has date

DON CANTRELL

The Class of 1954 at Newport Harbor High, which helped lead the way

to two league titles in basketball and cross country and three

second-place finishes in track and field, swimming and baseball, is

charting plans for its 50th reunion.

Attorney and one-time track athlete Hal Seely has disclosed that

the grand event will be Oct. 23 at the American Legion Hall in

Newport Beach, beginning at 6 p.m.

With high hopes of drawing many classmates out of the past and

distant places, the ’54 committee is urging, “missing mates,” to

respond relative to future planning.

The ’54 classmates are invited to contact Seely by telephone in

the evenings at, (949) 644-0278, or fax, (949) 759-1304.

Some of the top ’54 athletes were tall basketball center Bill

Inloes, the late basketball player Bill Kelter, the late fullback

Austin Smith, football center Ken Nack, tackle Bob Cantu, back Dick

Campbell, distance runner Seely and swimmer Seymour Beek.

Coach Jules Gage directed the varsity basketball team to an 18-5

record, the Sunset League title and a quarterfinal appearance in the

CIF playoffs.

Inloes and sterling forward Paul Neuman were first-team all-league

honorees while Bill Wetzel and Fred Nesbitt were named to the second

team. Nesbitt was also named the team’s Most Valuable Player and a

captain.

The Newport boys cross country champions, coached by Ralph Reed

and Ed Rice, featured superb runners. Among them were Tod White, who

broke the school’s record in the mile, Seely, Larry Castro, Jim

Vineyard, Larry Chapman, Bill Pigg and Eloy Martinez.

Incidentally, the junior varsity cross country team also won the

league championship with a squad that featured Harry Hilliard, Ted

Martinez and Charles Cawthorn.

The varsity swim team never lost in dual meets, but was edged out

at the league finals and settled for second place. The team was paced

by Jerry Farquhar and Ken Bodenhoefer.

The ’54 track team won all its dual meets but one and finished in

second place. The star was Nate Varney, who competed in the high jump

and hurdles with great skill. The top sprinter was Lee Taylor, who

ran 10.0 in the 100-yard dash. White and Seely added strength in the

distance races.

The classy baseball team, coached by Emil Neeme, featured

outstanding players like Jim Newkirk, Dennis Fitzpatrick, Bill

Wetzel, Paul Lorentzen, Dick Mirkovich and Ted Martinez.

In time, Newkirk, a pitcher, would advance to Orange Coast College

and lead the Pirates to two conference championships.

Fitzpatrick later advanced to the Cal Bears and helped lead them

to an NCAA basketball tittle in 1959.

The Tars could only finish 2-6 in football, but sent 20 players on

to the following year’s team, such as powerful fullback Charles

Berry, quarterback George Schuitt, end Lorentzen, guard Glenn Thomas,

tackles Newkirk and Mirkovich and guard Steve Watcher.

A closing note on Neuman should cover the fact that he would, in

time, star at Stanford in basketball, then advance to the pros with

the Syracuse Nationals.

Thomas would eventually coach the Magnolia High football team to

two outstanding seasons, then link up with Herb Hill as assistant at

Loara. Thomas later moved on to Fullerton College, where he served as

an assistant to Hal Sherbeck for many years.

Coach Gage would eventually become athletic director of the new

Costa Mesa High in 1960, while Al Irwin would shift to OCC as head

grid coach in ’56. Neeme would head to Anaheim High.

The highlight for Reed and White came in White’s senior year, when

he won the state prep mile run and broke the national record in 4

minutes, 20 seconds.