June 13, 2006

HAMILTON, N.Y. - Colgate senior swimmer Levi Benson (Allegany, N.Y.) was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America men's at-large third team, the College Sports Information Directors of America announced on Tuesday, June 13. Benson is the first swimmer in Colgate history to earn the honor.

Benson is Colgate's first Academic All-American since John Frieser made the 2003 Academic All-America football team. The only other member of the Colgate swimming and diving program to earn Academic All-America status is diver Cheryl Meltz, who was named to the women's at-large second team in 1998.

This season, Benson swam the second leg of the varsity record-setting 400 free relay at the Patriot League Championship. The team co-captain ranks fourth all-time at Colgate in the 100 backstroke, and sixth in the 200 back.

Benson graduated from Colgate last month magna cum laude with a 3.73 cumulative grade-point average, and with honors in molecular biology. He is a member of four national honor societies: Phi Beta Kappa, Beta Beta Beta (biology), Gamma Sigma Alpha (Greek), and Phi Eta Sigma (freshman). Benson is a four-time member of the Patriot League Academic Honor Roll, and achieved a place on the Dean's List every semester of his college career.

This spring, Benson received the Gottesman Award for Excellence in Sciences and Athletics; a Dr. Leo H. Speno '26 Prize for general involvement at Colgate and pursuit of a medical degree; the Nathanial B. Stanton Scholarship for assistance at medical school; and the Arthur Gillick Award from Theta Chi for demonstrated leadership.

Benson is an Alumni Memorial Scholar, a distinction presented to the top 200 applicants of each Colgate class, and he used a $5,000 AMS grant to do research in Europe on complementary and alternative medicine. Last summer, he co-authored two papers through a grant from the National Science Foundation. Benson will begin medical school at Penn State in the fall.

Student-athletes who have achieved at least sophomore standing, are starters or significant contributors to their team, and who own at least a 3.20 cumulative grade-point average are eligible to be nominated for the Academic All-America program. Benson is one of 15 members of the Academic All-America men's at-large third team, which also includes athletes from such sports as fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, skiing, tennis and volleyball.