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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

EWU volleyball coach Wade Benson back in saddle after tough battle with cancer

EWU volleyball coach Wade Benson says it was an easy decision to return to coaching after "you’re basically on your back for eight months and you finally start feeling some energy." Benson underwent months of chemotherapy and radiation to combat throat cancer. (Liz Kishimoto)
Wade Benson is thinking about lineups, recruiting and practice plans. It beats the heck out of the months of chemotherapy and radiation treatments he’s endured to battle the throat cancer that forced him to take a leave of absence as Eastern Washington University’s volleyball coach last season. His last three PET scans showed he’s 100 percent cancer free. His energy level is returning, even though he’s lost roughly 35 pounds. Food just doesn’t taste the same so adding pounds isn’t easy. He supplements his food intake with four “meal-replacement” shakes daily. EWU earlier this week announced Benson has resumed head coaching duties. “It was an easy decision in the sense that when you’re basically on your back for eight months and you finally start feeling some energy, and believe me it was a slow process to get to that energy stage, I’m just happy and excited to be able to do this versus where I was,” Benson said. “My doctor pretty much said, ‘Get up and go, do your thing.’ That’s the best thing for eating, being active and it should help generate some hunger. There’s no reason you can’t live a normal life.” Benson’s life was turned “upside down” when doctors found that a tumor on the end of his tongue and the cancer had spread to his lymph nodes and esophagus. It was diagnosed as stage 4, “which is pretty much the most hardcore you can have,” he said. Treatments took a toll on his body and mind. He dropped to 158 pounds. There were numerous days when he broke down and all he could think about was his wife and kids. “I saw Curt Schilling in an interview and he has the same type (of cancer),” Benson said. “He told the interviewer on the seventh of his 10-step process of chemotherapy that he wouldn’t do it, that he couldn’t do it anymore. On my ninth one, I was the same way. I ended up doing it, my wife pushed me and the doctor wasn’t going let me stop.” Benson made occasional appearances at practices and matches last season. Assistant coach Michael King guided EWU to a 9-20 record as interim head coach. “I really feel strongly that Mike did as good a job as anybody could have done in the country given a similar situation,” Benson said. “It was really difficult for a lot of reasons but mostly because the kids have gone through four coaches in four years.” Benson’s first order of business is establishing consistency. He said the Eagles match up physically with the rest of the Big Sky but “just need to turn the corner.” He has a long thank-you list, beginning with the support he received from EWU and the community. Benson, known as a fiery coach, said players might notice some changes. “There just more love, so to speak, towards everything, maybe a little better understanding,” he said. “I really look at the players in a different light. It’s much more as a father figure. “I still have a little button that if it’s pushed I can still get a little fired up. But it’s much deeper and harder to get to.”