Long Beach State University Athletics
Long Beach State University
Beach Opener
Track and Field Wraps Up Beach Opener To Conclude First Meet Of 2026 Outdoor Season
3/7/2026 5:37:00 PM | Track and Field
LONG BEACH, Calif.-- Long Beach State closed out the Beach Opener on Saturday with a full day of track and field competition at Jack Rose Track, wrapping up the opening meet of the 2026 outdoor season. The Beach produced several top finishes throughout the day, highlighted by strong performances in the distance races, sprints and field events as the program hosted teams from across the region to begin the outdoor campaign.
Women
Long Beach State opened the final day with a strong showing in the distance events as junior Brooke Willoughby finished second in the women's 3000-meter steeplechase with a time of 11:45.05. In the women's 1500 meters, Sharice Laygo placed 11th in 5:03.32 before later returning to place ninth in the 3000 meters with a time of 11:03.33.
Darcy Ray added a podium finish in the women's 3000-meter run, taking third with a time of 10:34.09.
In the sprints, Jaliyah Davis led the Beach in the 100 meters with a fifth-place finish in 12.06 seconds. Daryana Hall placed ninth in 12.20 seconds, while Jonelle Scott finished 10th with the same time. Davis also recorded a ninth-place finish in the 200 meters with a time of 24.93 seconds.
Freshman Elisa Rodriguez placed ninth in the women's 800 meters with a time of 2:20.98.
In the field events, Kendra Daniels tied for second in the high jump after clearing 1.66 meters. Grace Stoddart placed eighth with a mark of 1.46 meters.
The Beach also saw multiple scorers in the long jump as Jenna Morales finished seventh with a jump of 5.26 meters. Daneira Pellum placed eighth at 5.21 meters, while freshman Amelia Gray finished 11th with a mark of 5.07 meters and Jonelle Scott placed 12th at 5.06 meters.
In the triple jump, Madeline Scovil finished eighth with a mark of 11.34 meters.
Long Beach State also recorded strong performances in the pole vault as Jonelle Scott and Sophie Garrou each cleared 3.50 meters (11 feet, 5 ¾ inches).
Men
The Beach distance group was led by Lance Denhalter, who finished sixth in the 1500 meters with a time of 3:53.90 and later placed fourth in the 800 meters in 1:57.18.
In the men's 200 meters, Dre Johnson led Long Beach State with a fourth-place finish in 21.17 seconds. Sebastian Lopez followed in seventh at 21.32 seconds, while Vincent Jones placed 10th with a time of 21.38. Jaden Dasher finished 14th in 21.76 seconds.
In the field events, Cyprus Rice cleared 4.88 meters (16 feet) in the pole vault, while VJ Vanderlipe placed second with a clearance of 4.73 meters (15 feet, 6 ¼ inches).
Cytres Vives added a fourth-place finish in the high jump with a mark of 1.91 meters.
The Beach capped the meet with a strong showing in the men's 4x400-meter relay as the team of Jaden Dasher, Adren Parker, Tristyn Flores and Vincent Jones finished third with a time of 3:11.67.
Long Beach State will now head on the road for the Beach Brown Invitational hosted by Cal State Fullerton on March 12–13.
Players Mentioned
