Written by Doug Goodnough
Stephanie Heid Benson, ’03, is trying to take what she learned from the game of basketball and apply it to the game of life.
Hillsdale College’s first NCAA Division II All-American in women’s basketball dominated from the time she came on campus, becoming the program’s second all-time leading scorer and a four-time all-conference performer. During that time, the Chargers made back-to-back national tournament appearances and won their first conference tournament championship.
Now, she and her husband are competing in the restaurant business. The couple owns and operates a Southern-style seafood and barbecue place called Benson’s on the Mississippi. Although they are still working through the aftermath of the COVID-19 restrictions that hampered many small, family-owned restaurants, Benson said they are making it work.
“As I was growing up, my dad used to make me practice those (basketball) moves that were uncomfortable and that I didn’t want to do and complained about at the time,” said Benson, who moved back to her native Illinois in 2008 after spending some time teaching and coaching in Alabama. “He had me do it and eventually I would conquer that move and move on to the next thing. I’m kind of going through the same thing with the restaurant business. I’m trying to figure out uncomfortable, hard things in a business setting.”
The restaurant, set off the Mississippi River in the small town of Albany about 150 miles west of Chicago, takes up most of the couple’s time. Her husband, Bud, is a carpenter and chef. He worked to renovate the restaurant about four years ago and now runs the kitchen. Stephanie manages the front of house, as well as the bookkeeping, scheduling, and promotion. Despite the challenges of finding staff and rising food costs, the restaurant will celebrate its third anniversary in August.
Benson said her Hillsdale experience was everything she expected and more. Arriving on campus as a highly regarded point guard, she quickly earned a starting spot as a freshman. In fact, she remains Hillsdale’s all-time leader in assists (634) and steals (464) and finished second in career points (1,963).
“I’ve always had high expectations for myself and whatever team I’ve been on,” said Benson, who was inducted into Hillsdale’s Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010. “I just remember walking through those halls (in the Sports Complex) and there were always pictures of All-Americans hanging up. And I said, ‘I’m going to be an All-American someday.’ I wanted to win, first and foremost. But I wanted that goal.”
She said she couldn’t have asked for better teammates.
“It was a great fit,” Benson said. “We had a great group of teammates who came in. Everyone just meshed, and we played well and got along. It was a joy.”
Off the court, she was challenged by history professor Brad Birzer, who “didn’t care whether I played basketball or not. He told my dad, ‘There’s duties here in the classroom she had to do.’ That was good. It helped tell me what was expected.”
The physical education major also remembered good times with her fellow Chi Omega sisters.
Benson now has a new team: her family. With three children ages 7, 6, and 4, she and her husband homeschool them as well as run the family business. They enjoy the outdoors, especially gardening and bicycle riding. And her 6-year-old son, Obadiah, has a newfound love of basketball, which Benson said she will try to nurture.
“Life is like a basketball game,” she said. “There’s always a defender trying to take the ball from you. Just in different ways now.”
Doug Goodnough, ’90, is Hillsdale’s director of Alumni Marketing. He enjoys connecting with fellow alumni in new and wonderful ways.
Published in March 2023
