SAN DIEGO -- A former San Diego State track star pleaded guilty Tuesday to voluntary manslaughter in the stabbing death of her boyfriend.

Latoyonda Promise Mose, 23, had been charged with murder in the June 15 death of Allen Hardy.

Mose claimed she plunged a kitchen knife in Hardy's chest only after he beat her during a dispute over their relationship. An investigation into Hardy's background revealed he had a history of domestic violence, prosecutor Lucy Weismantel said. Lab reports also supported Mose's story, the prosecutor said.

Defense attorney Cynthia Bolden said she was prepared to call experts to testify that Mose was a battered woman. Before the stabbing, Bolden said that Hardy drank a bottle of wine and attacked and harassed his girlfriend over the course of the day.

Bolden had said Mose was deceived by the 27-year-old Hardy into believing he was single. The two shared an apartment.

Mose faces up to three years in prison at her Jan. 15 sentencing.

Before graduating earlier this year, Mose ran track for four years at San Diego State, setting the school indoor 60-meter and 400-meter records. She was named Mountain West Conference track athlete of the week in May 2001.

Widely known as Promise, Mose was included in Sports Illustrated's "Faces in the Crowd'' feature and was ranked No. 1 in the nation in the indoor 500-meter race as a high school student at John F. Kennedy High in Richmond, Va.