COSTA MESA -- Vanguard Track & Field was awarded a big end-of-season honor on Monday as Kaylee Best was announced as the Women's Field Freshman of the Year in the Pacific West Conference.  It is the first major award for the program in the league, and was well earned by Best, who was sensational in her first year at VU.  Competing in the long and triple jump disciplines, Best rewrote the school record for the first time on debut at the Rustbuster meet and went on to reset her own records throughout the year.  She won a long jump title at five competitions in 2026 and the triple jump at six events, culminating with two victories at the PacWest Championships to become the first individual champion in program history.  She again reset the records during her triumphs, with her ledger in the book now reading a 6.25m leap in the long jump and a 12.42m vault in the triple jump.  Her marks qualified her for the NCAA Division II National Championships, a first for VU, and she concluded as an All-American in the long jump in fourth while placing 13th in the triple jump.