By now, it’s a clich. Win the Super Bowl, go to Disney World. Win the World Series, go to Disney World. Win the NBA Championship – Disney World it is.

Break the Syracuse indoor pole vault record?

For Jessyca Jackson, the answer is simple: break it again.

Jackson set the indoor pole vault record in December with a mark of 11-5 . Last weekend, Jackson topped herself with a pole vault of 11-9 at the Syracuse Invitational. The Orange travels to Lewisburg, Pa. for the Bison Classic at Bucknell University this weekend.

Jackson won’t compete because she already qualified for the Big East Championships next weekend. Assistant coach Enoch Borozinski also wants to ensure that Jackson remains healthy. He said that Jackson has been battling a strained hip flexor, which has been bothering her in practice.

Despite the impressive mark, Jackson has yet to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Needless to say, the junior is anticipating breaking her record again.

‘I’ve got some new poles and I’ll get on those this week,’ Jackson said. ‘Hopefully, that will help me prepare. All I do is practice and pray and hope everything comes together.’

No problem, there: everything has come together. In fact, Borozinski claims that Jackson is progressing (ITALICS) too (ITALICS) fast.

‘Her progression is what we’ve hoped for,’ Borozinski said. ‘The only problem is she’s progressing too fast. Her nature is to keep improving. We keep on changing poles and she’s not getting a chance to get comfortable.’

It certainly hasn’t affected Jackson this season. However, her Syracuse career was not always as easy as rewriting record books.

Jackson’s timeline to the record started off on gymnastic mats of all places. While at Central Dauphin High School in Harrisburg, Pa., a track and field coach was searching for a viable pole-vaulter. Jackson, who had a background in gymnastics, offered the type of skill set to be successful.

It was love at first sight. Jackson adapted well and loved the sport. However, success is not the only thing motivating Jackson. She joked there was a little vanity involved, too.

‘It’s something I love to do,’ Jackson said. ‘It keeps me from getting fat.’

Attending Syracuse seemed like a no-brainer. Her mother went to SU, and the overall package seemed like a good fit. Also, as Jackson confessed, she liked the school’s colors.

When she came to Syracuse, though, Jackson wasn’t exactly passing with flying colors.

‘I knew my success would translate, but I had a tough freshman year,’ Jackson said. ‘I didn’t even clear what I did in high school.’

While she made it clear that it was no one else’s fault, the jumps coach before Borozinski was not a pole vaulter. When Borozinski was hired, Jackson improved.

‘We got a new coach (Borozinski) who actually vaulted before,’ Jackson said. ‘The coach before was excellent, but now I have a coach who can relate to my problems and what I’m going through.’

Borozinski agrees.

‘Pole vaulting is one of the events you can’t learn from reading about it,’ he said. ‘It’s easier to relate to an athlete who competed in it because they know what to expect. What I say can help her because (Jessyca) is more of a thinking athlete.’

Jackson’s thoughts are clear when it comes to her season goals. Jackson said the school record is rewarding, but she has her eyes set on winning Big East and qualifying for the NCAA championships.

Borozinski insists that the best is yet to come.

‘She’s really an outdoor (pole) vaulter,’ Borozinski said. ‘Last year, she was nowhere on the radar. Look at her now – she’s quite a bit ahead, but her biggest advance will come this spring.’

Published on February 9, 2005 at 12:00 pm