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WISCONSIN RAPIDS—On March 19, Wisconsin Rapids Lincoln's decorated wrestling coach, Scott Benitz, announced his decision to step down after 23 years leading the Red Raiders.
Benitz walks away from Rapids after helping lead the program to many accolades, including a 461-69 record, 471 career wins, and 14 Wisconsin Valley Conference titles.
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Over that Span, he led the Red Raiders to 16 regional titles, 11 sectional titles, and 9 team state titles. He also helped coach 21 wrestlers from Lincoln who were crowned Individual State Champions during his time at the helm.
Twenty years ago, Benitz was named the 2005 State Coach of the Year and 2005 NFHS Region Coach of the Year.
"Coach Benitz stands among the greatest wrestling coaches in Wisconsin high school athletics," said Ron Rasmussen, WRPS Superintendent and former Lincoln High School Principal. "Scott's unwavering dedication to Red Raider Wrestling has left an indelible mark on our program.
His decision to walk away comes after nearly 40 years at the helm, during which time he watched the program grow from a group struggling to consistently win dual meets to one of the most prominent wrestling programs in the state over the last three decades. After dedicating himself to excellence in wrestling, he wants to spend the next part of his life giving back to the youth in his life in a different way.
Through his passion for teaching, he will be able to continue guiding kids through welding, and the free time will open up more time for him to spend with his grandchildren.
“I just wanted to spend time with my students when I have more time,” Benitz said. “Winter months are always a tough time to balance teaching and coaching, and I want to be able to teach technology Ed this April. Next week, I'll be going to SkillsUSA with some of my welding students, and I'm pretty excited about that. So I just wanted to start to experience some things a little differently than I had the last 40 years.”
His ability to guide athletes through both triumphs and challenges on the mat is unmatched, and his strategic expertise in preparing for competition is second to none.
Benitz intends to fully continue his long-tenured teaching career at Rapids, where he teaches Technology Education. He graduated from Wisconsin Rapids in 1982 and has been a head wrestling coach at the program since 20010, when he took over for his dad, Lewie Benitz, after seven years of co-coaching.
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It's an understatement to say his impact within the Wisconsin Rapids wrestling community will withstand the test of time.
This past season, he helped Tanner Gormanson place first in D1's 285-pound weight class at the WIAA state individual wrestling tournament. He hopes to continue making those kinds of impacts in the classroom.
"Beyond high school, his continued commitment to supporting his athletes is truly commendable," Rasmussen said. We proudly honor and celebrate his contributions and loyalty to Wisconsin Rapids Wrestling and look forward to his continued contributions as a teacher at Lincoln."
For Benitz, he is just thankful to have been given the keys for the ride.
“Thank you for allowing me to spend the majority of my life with the youth of Wisconsin Rapids and the trust that you’ve given in our program and our coaching staff to to make decisions, knowing that some of the decisions weren't easy and probably always popular, But that we, you know, really appreciate the opportunity to work with our youth and to help shape them into tomorrow's, you know, community leaders,” Benitz said. And I think that's what coaching and teaching has been all about, for me, is trying to be a role model and example to follow, and hopefully they become more than more than what they believe they are capable of.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Sports Reporter Alfred Smith III at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @AlfredS_III.
This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: Scott Benitz is stepping down as Wisconsin Rapids wrestling head coach
Continue reading...
Benitz walks away from Rapids after helping lead the program to many accolades, including a 461-69 record, 471 career wins, and 14 Wisconsin Valley Conference titles.
Wausau East journey to state: Wausau East hoops emerge as state contenders reaching WIAA state tournament bid
Over that Span, he led the Red Raiders to 16 regional titles, 11 sectional titles, and 9 team state titles. He also helped coach 21 wrestlers from Lincoln who were crowned Individual State Champions during his time at the helm.
Twenty years ago, Benitz was named the 2005 State Coach of the Year and 2005 NFHS Region Coach of the Year.
"Coach Benitz stands among the greatest wrestling coaches in Wisconsin high school athletics," said Ron Rasmussen, WRPS Superintendent and former Lincoln High School Principal. "Scott's unwavering dedication to Red Raider Wrestling has left an indelible mark on our program.
His decision to walk away comes after nearly 40 years at the helm, during which time he watched the program grow from a group struggling to consistently win dual meets to one of the most prominent wrestling programs in the state over the last three decades. After dedicating himself to excellence in wrestling, he wants to spend the next part of his life giving back to the youth in his life in a different way.
Through his passion for teaching, he will be able to continue guiding kids through welding, and the free time will open up more time for him to spend with his grandchildren.
“I just wanted to spend time with my students when I have more time,” Benitz said. “Winter months are always a tough time to balance teaching and coaching, and I want to be able to teach technology Ed this April. Next week, I'll be going to SkillsUSA with some of my welding students, and I'm pretty excited about that. So I just wanted to start to experience some things a little differently than I had the last 40 years.”
His ability to guide athletes through both triumphs and challenges on the mat is unmatched, and his strategic expertise in preparing for competition is second to none.
Benitz intends to fully continue his long-tenured teaching career at Rapids, where he teaches Technology Education. He graduated from Wisconsin Rapids in 1982 and has been a head wrestling coach at the program since 20010, when he took over for his dad, Lewie Benitz, after seven years of co-coaching.
Marshfield ends decades-long drought: Marshfield hoops punches ticket to state basketball tournament, ends 31-year drought
It's an understatement to say his impact within the Wisconsin Rapids wrestling community will withstand the test of time.
This past season, he helped Tanner Gormanson place first in D1's 285-pound weight class at the WIAA state individual wrestling tournament. He hopes to continue making those kinds of impacts in the classroom.
"Beyond high school, his continued commitment to supporting his athletes is truly commendable," Rasmussen said. We proudly honor and celebrate his contributions and loyalty to Wisconsin Rapids Wrestling and look forward to his continued contributions as a teacher at Lincoln."
For Benitz, he is just thankful to have been given the keys for the ride.
“Thank you for allowing me to spend the majority of my life with the youth of Wisconsin Rapids and the trust that you’ve given in our program and our coaching staff to to make decisions, knowing that some of the decisions weren't easy and probably always popular, But that we, you know, really appreciate the opportunity to work with our youth and to help shape them into tomorrow's, you know, community leaders,” Benitz said. And I think that's what coaching and teaching has been all about, for me, is trying to be a role model and example to follow, and hopefully they become more than more than what they believe they are capable of.”
Contact or send game stats/info to Sports Reporter Alfred Smith III at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @AlfredS_III.
This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: Scott Benitz is stepping down as Wisconsin Rapids wrestling head coach
Continue reading...
