Eric Nicely qualifies for NCAA Championships
Nick Williams, Assistant SID

DEFIANCE, Ohio – Eric Nicely of the Defiance College Track & Field team qualified for the pole vault event for the 2006 NCAA Division III Men's & Women's Outdoor Championships Sunday afternoon.

Nicely provisionally qualified for the NCAA Championships during the HCAC Championships on April 29 after clearing a height of 15' 6.25". One week later, Nicely bested that height at the Defiance Open when he vaulted a height of 15' 7.25", a Defiance College record.

Today, the selection committee made it official, as Nicely was announced as the 16th and final qualifier for the NCAA Championships.

Nicely will jump Thursday at host school Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois.