VJ Vanderlipe Award Field Athlete of the Week Week Of 3/17/2026 Sport Track & Field School Long Beach State Year Graduate Student Position Hometown Salinas, Calif. High School Everett Alvarez HS Long Beach State's VJ Vanderlipe won the men's pole vault competition at the Ben Brown Invitational to earn Big West Men's Field Athlete of the Week award. It is Vanderlipe's first career weekly honor. The Beach graduate student placed first in the pole vault at the Ben Brown Invitational with a personal-best clearance of 5.20m/17'0.75". The mark ranks first in The Big West, first in the west region and third in NCAA.