Westminster's Benson joins 1,000 point club

Welcome to the 1,000 point club, Joel Benson.

With 3:44 left in the first quarter, Benson walked up to the free-throw line and calmly sank his first free throw. It gave him 5 points for the game and 1,000 for his career. The game was stopped for a moment while Westminister athletic director Rick Palmer recognized Benson for his accomplishment. After he made his second free throw, Benson went back to work, scoring 16 points and hauling in 12 rebounds as the Warriors defeated Francis Parker 67-40 in a nonconference boys basketball game in Elgin.

After the game, Palmer recognized Benson's special night by giving him the game ball with a 1,000 points inscribed on the ball.

"The first game I got to coach him was his sophomore year, and I don't know if he scored a point, or maybe three at the most. I didn't know what to think. I remember the next night and it ended the 28 or 29 game losing streak, he had about 19 points and he was in double digits in rebounds, and I thought, wow!," said Westminster coach Bruce Firchau.

"And you just saw his confidence really come, and he came of age. His junior year his whole game stepped up. He's gotten better and better each year. He's stronger, he's coachable. The best thing about Joel Benson is that his best days are ahead of him."

Said Benson: "A thousand points... the team helped me out. You can't do anything without them. It's my team. I like them; it's a brotherhood."

"I've known him since fifth grade, and he's so humble. He's not all about himself, he's more about the team," said Westminster senior Tyler Beacher, who scored 14 points, dished out 5 assists and grabbed 4 rebounds.

Westminister controlled the game from the opening tap, racing out to a 20-4 lead at the end of the first quarter. Ryan Saltzman made an attempt to get Francis Parker back into the game, hitting three 3-pointers, but it only cut the deficit to 11, the closest the visitors would come.

Tyler Beachler led the Warriors in the third quarter by scoring 8 points, which extended the Warriors' lead to 48-24 at one point, doubling the Colonels' point total.

Tyler Beachler and his brother Ryan would dominate the fourth quarter, as they combined for 7 of the team's 17 points to end the game. Ryan Beachler scored 9 and grabbed 5 rebounds.

Both teams committed 15 turnovers, but the Warriors out-rebounded the Colonels 33-13.