Hall of Fame
Bernice (Wesley) Benjamin is one of the most prolific women’s basketball players to ever step foot on the court at Utica College. Her impact on the game extends from Utica to Delaware, where she was recently inducted into the Delaware Afro-American Sports Hall of Fame for her contributions to athletics over the past 20 years.
A dynamic forward, she was a four-year letter-winner, two-year captain, and two-time most valuable player for the Pioneers. She currently ranks second on the College’s all-time scoring and rebounding lists with 1,750 points and 1,073 rebounds. She ended her career as one of only two players in program history, along with 2008 Pioneer Hall of Fame inductee Sharon Lyke ’85, to score more than 1,000 points and grab more than 1,000 rebounds. She led UC in scoring, rebounding, and field goal percentage in each of her four years.
Bernice’s senior season, by any standard, was one of the dominant in school history. She ranked in the Top 10 nationally in both points and rebounds. Her 556 points set a school single-season scoring record, and she earned ECAC First Team All-Star recognition.
Prior to UC, she was an honorable mention All-American selection at William Penn High School. As a senior at Penn, she was a First Team All-State and All-Conference selection after guiding her team to both Flight A and Blue Hen Conference championships.
After college she played one season of professional basketball in Kronberg, Germany before returning to UC as a graduate assistant coach. For the past 12 years she has been a teacher at Bancroft Elementary in Wilmington, DE , and she recently accepted an offer to be the physical education teacher at Porter Road Elementary School beginning in the fall of 2009.
Bernice graduated from Utica College with a degree in public relations/ business administration. Her family includes her son, KJ, mother and father, Lola and John Wesley, two sisters, and one brother.
