Mark Bennett starts his first year with the Tritons and his fifth year coaching in the NJCAA. Previously, Bennett was the head cross country and assistant track and field coach at Pima Community College in Tucson, AZ.

While at Pima, Coach Bennett helped lead the Aztecs to six NJCAA National Cross Country Championship appearances, with the highest team and individual finishes since 2016. In his first cross country season with Pima, the Aztecs were able to claim the NJCAA Region 1 men’s team title, a feat not accomplished since 1981. Since then, the lowest team finish had been second at the regional level for both the men and women.

On the track, Bennett oversaw 32 individual national championship qualifiers in distance events at Pima. At the 2024 NJCAA Indoor Track & Field Championships, Bennett coached Abraham Valenzuela to a national runner-up finish and #4 NJCAA All-Time mark in the Mile (4:03.76). During the 2023 outdoor season, he coached Joel Gardner to, at the time, a #9 NJCAA All-Time mark in the 5,000m (14:12.84). The Pima Aztecs also went from the last ranked team in Region 1, to claiming four NJCAA Region track titles, breaking a 40-year, no-win streak.

In total, Bennett coached 31 ACCAC All-Conference athletes, 55 All-Region athletes, and 8 All-Americans. He has coached teams to five Region titles, six Region Runner-up teams, with the lowest finish in his career being third at the region level. Before Pima, Bennett coached one year at his alma mater, Marana High School, in Tucson, AZ.

Bennett ran collegiately for the Pima CC. He was the team captain and a two-time All-American athlete while representing the Aztecs in six NJCAA National Championships. He was also nominated for the 2015-16 Male Athlete of the Year for Pima. Upon graduation, he was a member of the nationally ranked cross country and track teams of Southern Utah University, who defeated #1 nationally ranked Northern Arizona University to claim the 2019 Big Sky team title. Bennett had a short semi-professional road racing career in 2019-20 before the pandemic.

Bennett graduated with dual bachelor’s degrees in economics and history. For part of Bennett’s capstone project, he created and presented a formula to predict 10,000m performances with NCAA athletes. Bennett recently completed a USATF Level 2 Coaching Certification in Endurance in July 2024 and his USATF Cross Country Specialist certification in 2021. Prior to his career in athletics, Bennett served as a volunteer missionary for two years in the Texas McAllen Mission and has since served in numerous volunteer positions in his Church. Bennett’s other duties at Iowa Central will include serving as a housing coordinator on campus.