Eli Nichols Article (PA)

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http://www.advertiser-tribune.com/sport ... ys0602.asp

Area boys have one last to chance to tweak their craft

By John Montgomery, jmontgomery@advertiser-tribune.com

Once you get to the postseason, work turns more to minor tweaking rather than wholesale changes, especially in the week leading up to state.

But that doesn't mean how you work has to always stay the same.
Once Seneca East senior Eli Nichols advanced out of the Division III regional meet in the pole vault, he set right to work on getting ready for the state meet. Bright and early, to be exact.

"Ed Phillips, he's our pole vault instructor. He has him practicing in morning because he's vaulting at 9 a.m., which I thought was a great move by my assistant," Seneca East coach Rod Schar said.

"He's all ready practiced three mornings - Saturday, Monday and Tuesday," he said Tuesday night. "So that part of it's important, because you've got to be at your best at 9 a.m. and there's a lot of people who aren't at their best at 9 a.m. That experience in practicing at the equivalent time should be most beneficial."

"And Eli is intelligent enough to be agree with that totally. He was ready to do the morning practices," Schar said. "He's a competitor, he knows what it takes and whatever it takes, he's willing to do. And on top of that, he's got an excellent pole vault coach."

And experience, too.

Nichols finished third at least year's state meet by clearing 13-9, the same height he topped to finish third at this year's regional. And Schar said the desire that got Nichols to state in 2004 has only increased this year.

"That was a really great for Eli, and the team and the school. He was really on focus [last year], and likewise again this year," Schar said.