NORTHWEST NAZARENE UNIVERSITY
Ben Johnson didn’t want to play baseball as a kid. His experience with t-ball left him bored and frustrated. At 10, however, when all his friends signed up to play, he decided to try again. The only position they needed was catcher, so he volunteered. Ben continued playing through high school. He had a freak accident early in his senior year when the batter swung and stepped over the plate, hitting his elbow as he tried to throw out a baserunner. He was told he’d have to have surgery—with a year-long recovery—which devastated him.
Ben knew he’d play again because he’d already signed at NNU, but he was disappointed to miss playing most of his senior season. A third opinion by a physician at the University of Washington suggested rehabilitation, claiming that Ben’s elbow had enough stability to avoid surgery. It worked. After a few months of rehab, he had recovered enough to play in the last couple of games his senior year. That’s when he decided he wanted to go into orthopedic surgery.
Being a pre-med student challenged Ben in ways he hadn’t foreseen. As a student-athlete, his schedule was exhausting. During his first two years at NNU, Ben learned resilience and time management. “I learned that I can handle going through difficult situations,” Ben said. “NNU allowed me to experience those difficulties while also being there if I needed the support. Everything wasn’t handed to me—it was like they said, ‘we’re going to expect a lot of you, but if you need something, let us know, and we’ll accommodate.’”
Ben’s coaches and professors were instrumental in Ben’s success at NNU. They encouraged him to seek out the answers he needed and taught him to grow and improve, whether in the classroom or on the field. Baseball Coach Joe Shaefer said, “In my 18 years of coaching college baseball, I have never had a player who was committed to excellence in every area of his life as much as Ben Johnson. He worked hard on and off the field and achieved outstanding grades in one of the toughest majors offered.”
Ben was determined to do both of the things he was passionate about: baseball and biology pre-med. “There’s not a secret to it,” Ben said. “It’s more what you want to devote your time to, how disciplined you are and what you’re passionate about. I knew I wanted to go into medicine, and I knew I had to be at the top of my game at school. I also wanted to be at the top of my game in baseball. I knew I had to do x, y and z to get there. So, I just optimized my schedule. I was willing to do what it took to get there.”
Ben’s efforts paid off. Prior to one of the Division II National Championship games, he was awarded the Elite 90 Award for holding a 3.98 GPA. This award is given to only ninety student-athletes in the country—across all the NCAA sports for both men and women—for recognition of the athlete with the highest GPA participating at the given championships. And in the entire Division II for baseball, Ben was selected. “It put the cherry on top by recognizing the academics that I worked hard for, while also recognizing the athletic piece,” Ben said. “That was transformative.”
“The progression I’ve made as a baseball player has been astronomical. I was the lowest-ranked player on the team my first year. By my final season, I hit 364 and was the star catcher,” Ben described. “I love reflecting on the journey I went through. It started so difficult, and I ended up being in the highest-level baseball I could’ve played at the Division II level. It fills me with a sense of pride…I know what it’s like to struggle to find your place at NNU as a student-athlete. But NNU will make you better than before you were there. It’s going to improve you. It’s truly a special place that you couldn’t find anywhere else.”
Ben starts medical school at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Chicago this fall. Because of NNU, he feels well-equipped to take the next step toward his dream of becoming an orthopedic surgeon. Watch as Ben tells his NNU story.
