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No one played a bigger role in the success of The College of Wooster’s men’s swimming team during Keith Beckett’s lengthy tenure as head coach as 12-time All-American Wes Bennett, who led the Scots to the NCAA Div. III Championships four-straight years and came just one-tenth of a second away from winning a national championship in the sport’s glamour event – the 50 freestyle.
“Wes was sought after by many schools, including Kenyon and Denison,” remembered 19-year head coach Beckett, who recruited him. “Naturally, I was elated when he selected Wooster because he had a performance standard that would help us from day one.”
It didn’t take long for the Knoxville, Tenn., native to not only live up to Beckett’s hype, but exceed it.
In his rookie season of 1997-98, Bennett qualified for the national meet in both the 50 and 100 free while setting new school records in both events, and he went on to capture his first All-American certificate with a 15th-place finish in the latter. He was just getting his feet wet, though, as he garnered All-American honors in five events as a sophomore at the NCAA’s, highlighted by touching third in the 50 free and fourth as a member of the 200 free relay team.
Bennett’s junior year was the one he calls the “peak” of his athletic career, and for good reason, as he battled with Denison University’s Aaron Cole all season long in a competitive rivalry that pitted the two best freestylers in Div. III against each other.
“It was as epic as Rocky and Apollo Creed,” recalls Beckett. “Either one of them could have won the NCAA championship in the 50 free that year, or in most years around that time for that matter. They were that good.”
Ultimately, Bennett came up just a fingertip shy of defeating Cole at the NCAA’s, held in Atlanta, settling for second-place in his signature event, however, his time of 20.16 is still a school record, and was such an impressive mark that year (17th-fastest in the country in short-course pools) he qualified for the 2000 U.S. Olympic Team Trials, which is believed to be the only time a Wooster student-athlete accomplished that feat during his/her time on campus.
That wasn’t all Bennett did that season, as he also set three other still-standing school records at the NCAA’s, including third-place in the 100 free (45.37), third-place in the 200 free relay (1:22.91), and fifth in the 400 free relay (3:06.53). Bennett and the Scots finished 11th overall at the national meet, the second-best result in program history (ninth in 1979).
Finally, as a senior, Bennett again nearly took home a national championship in the 50 free. He entered the event with the fastest time in the country (20.39), but wound up tying for second at the NCAA’s with a time 20.71. He also took 15th in the 100 free, giving him the second-most All-American certificates in program history.
“I would label Wes as the most accomplished male swimmer I coached at the College,” said Beckett. “He was a fierce competitor, but that said, he was also a quiet and reflective person. If you observed him, you might not even notice the intense competitive drive that he held. And he wasn’t lost on individual glory. His motivation lied in helping his team.”
Bennett, a communication studies major at Wooster, is currently a land home coordinator at 21st Mortgage but he plans to enter the teaching field as he’s putting the finishing touches on a Masters of Education degree from South College.
Bennett, who also previously worked at the corporate headquarters for Regal Entertainment, is a movie buff, even writing reviews at his own website – Film Picks (www.filmpicks.co) – and he also has stoked his competitive spirit by completing two marathons and playing ultimate frisbee. He lives with his wife Brooke Lancaster Bennett in Knoxville.