Gregory Bennett, a 2017 graduate of Western Dubuque, has spent time and effort growing in baseball at both the high school and collegiate levels. He attended the 2015 PBR Future Games, among many other showcases, to get his name out there. Among the 2017 class, PBR ranked him 1st out of shortstops and 12th overall in the state. From there, he committed to Iowa Western, where he continued developing. He now plays for Middle Tennessee State. Between the time he spent at Iowa Western, what he has learned during showcases and games, and his hard work, Bennett has found success in baseball.

 

PBR helped Bennett in looking at collegiate baseball. “PBR was the first-ever high school showcase I went to when I was a freshman in high school, and that's when I met Rob Allison,” he said. “ I got really close with him, and he thought really highly of me. Ironically, he was at Iowa Western, where I ended up going first for junior college, so he helped out a lot there. But just from freshman year all the way up to senior year, PBR helped me more than anything. Honestly, it just got my name out there.”

Bennett chose Iowa Western, among other offers. “By going to Juco, I was being competitive with people closer to my age,” he said. “And I got offers out of high school to go D1, but I didn't really feel like I was mature enough. I didn't think I was ready mentally or physically to be playing guys three-four years older than me.”

His decision paid off. “So, going to junior college was definitely the best decision to get stronger, get my game a lot better, get physically and mentally better, and Iowa Western did that more than anywhere I would have thought,” Bennett said.

After the visit, it was an easy decision. “The first time I stepped on campus, I just fell in love with the atmosphere, how straightforward he was, his track record that they had of sending players where they want to go,” Bennett said.

 

Gregory Bennett 8/7/16

 

Once Bennett got to Iowa Western, Coach Rardin put him to work. “Every day at practice, it was game-like,” he said. “All the drills we did, having our two-a-days, everything we did there was like a simulated scrimmage. It was just the different situations that would happen in baseball. There wasn't a day where I didn't feel like I got better when I was at Iowa Western.”

The mindset of getting better every day has continued for Bennett. “Every day think about how there's always somebody out there getting 1% better,” he said. “You always got to keep putting in the work. And there's always going to be somebody in your position that's working to take your spot.”

And always work hard. “Just have to keep grinding,” Bennett said. “That’s what you have to do. It's just a constant grind day in and day out, and you just can't get sick of it.”

Gregory Bennett has followed open doors of opportunity through PBR showcases, playing for Iowa Western and now playing for Middle Tennessee State. He grew as a baseball player at each stop and showed his development, finding success along the way.