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CAREER BESTS
Pole Vault 5.41m/17-09.00
2009 (JUNIOR)
Qualified for his third consecutive NCAA Outdoor Championship, winning the NCAA Mideast Regional Championship, clearing a season-best 5.36 meters (17-07.00); won his second-straight Big Ten Outdoor Championship title, leading a 1-2 finish for the Boilermakers; provisionally qualified for the NCAA Indoor Championships with a top mark of 5.20 meters (17-00.75); tied for fifth at the Big Ten Indoor Championships with a height of 5.10 meters (16-08.75); earned First-Team All-Big Ten, USTFCCCA All-Region and Academic All-Big Ten.
2008 (SOPHOMORE)
Cleared a career-best 5.41 meters (17-09.00) to place second at the NCAA Mideast Regional and advance to the national championships; won his first career Big Ten title, capturing the outdoor crown; named Second-Team All-Big Ten after a silver medal performance at the indoor conference meet.
2007 (REDSHIRT/FRESHMAN)
Redshirted the 2007 indoor season; qualified for the NCAA Outdoor Championships as a rookie, earning an automatic bid with a fourth-place regional finish and USTFCCCA All-Region honors; earned fifth place at the Big Ten Outdoor Championships.
2006 (FRESHMAN/REDSHIRT)
Placed at his first career conference championship, taking sixth at the Big Ten Indoor Championships; medically redshirted the 2006 outdoor season.
HIGH SCHOOL
Four-year varsity letterwinner at Hickory High School; won the Pennsylvania State High School Championship both indoors and outdoors, setting the state record at the outdoor meet; qualified for the Nike Indoor and Outdoor National Championships, winning the indoor national title and taking fifth outdoors for All-America honors; also qualified for the outdoor state meet as a sophomore and junior and the indoor state meet as a junior.
PERSONAL
Eric Daniel Sparks was born Nov. 16, 1986, in Hermitage, Pa.; is the son of Ray and Monica Sparks; has two sisters, Katie and Shannon; enjoys playing the guitar, mountain biking, snowboarding and hiking; majoring in organization, leadership and supervision.