Beck Benson begins her fifth year as UChicago Head Diving Coach and Assistant Director of Aquatics in 2022-23.
The historic 2021-22 season featured a national championship for Elizabeth Cron. The Maroon senior won the women's one-meter dive and also claimed national runner-up in the women's three-meter dive at the NCAA Championships. At the conclusion of the meet, Cron was named the NCAA Women's Diver of the Meet. Benson's three women divers at the NCAA Championship meet – Cron, Cynthia Tang and Alice Saparov – earned two All-American honors each between the two boards. Benson was subsequently picked as the NCAA Division III Women's Coach of the Meet and Division III Women's Coach of the Year. On the men's side, Sylar Migon (one meter) and Logan Sherwin (one-meter and three-meter) combined for three All-American awards at the NCAA national meet. At the conference level, the UChicago women's divers swept the top three placements on both boards at the UAA Championships. Benson was voted as the UAA Women's Diving Coach of the Year. Cron was selected as the UAA Women's Diver of the Year.
The 2019-20 season saw all six of Benson's divers (four women, two men) qualify for the NCAA Division III Championships, with each earning All-American honors. Her women's squad made program history when they swept the top four spots on both the one-meter and three-meter boards at the NCAA Diving Regional. Agnes Lo won the UAA titles on both boards en route to UAA Women's Diver of the Year accolades. Benson was named the UAA Women's Diving Coach of the Year for the second-straight season.
In the 2018-19 season, she was selected as the Women's Division III Diving Coach of the Year by the College Swimming & Diving Coaches' Association (CSCAA). Four of Benson's women's divers qualified for the NCAA Division III Championships and each earned All-American honors on the one-meter and three-meter boards. Agnes Lo finished second in the three-meter dive and third in the one-meter dive at NCAAs, while also winning both boards at the NCAA Regional. Lo broke her own school records in the one-meter and three-meters.
At the 2019 UAA Championships, Lo claimed both one-meter and three-meter dives, while Elizabeth Cron was runner-up on both boards. Benson was named the UAA Women's Diving Coach of the Year.
Benson spent nine years as Head Diving Coach at James Madison University from 2007 to 2016. Her JMU divers racked up impressive accomplishments in that time, including:
- 2 NCAA Championship Qualifiers (first in program history)
- 1 NCAA Zone Champion (first in program history)
- 23 NCAA Zone Qualifiers
- 10 Conference Champions
- 6 Conference Divers of the Year
- 4 Conference Rookie Divers of the Year
- 6 Conference Diving Coach of the Year Awards
Prior to James Madison, Benson was the interim head diving coach at North Carolina State University in 2006-07. Six of her seven divers qualified for the NCAA Zone B meet. Benson’s other coaching stints include Broughton High School (Raleigh, N.C.); North Hills Club (Raleigh, N.C.); Aquatics Club (Chapel Hill, N.C.); Jordan High School (Durham, N.C.); Alabama Diving Club; Los Angeles Diving Team; and UCLA.
As a collegiate diver, Benson was a two-time conference champion for the University of South Carolina. She was the National Independent Conference three-meter champion as a freshman with the Gamecocks. She was also named the 1984 Metro Conference Diver of the Year and was an NCAA semifinalist.
Benson earned her bachelor’s degree in sport & fitness management from the University of Alabama. She received her master’s degree in sport administration from North Carolina State.
