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Opportunity to build a winning program attracted Benoit to UK

Luke Benoit

Kentucky baseball coach Nick Mingione and his staff have been landing commitments for the 2017 and 2018 classes at a high rate over the past month. On July 6, Northboro, Mass., 2017 outfielder Luke Benoit joined the fold.

Benoit is a 6-foot-4, 205-pound right fielder who will spend his senior season at IMG Academy in Bradenton, Fla. He’s just the second outfielder commit for Kentucky in the 2017 class, and his commitment came with an assist from new pitching coach Jim Belanger.

“My coach (Frank Cooney) in the summertime for the Evoshield Canes is really good friends with Coach Belanger,” Benoit said. “They were recruiting me over at Maryland, but then he went to Kentucky. Kentucky’s in the SEC and a great school and everything, so that’s pretty much how it started.”

The appeal to play for a school that’s on the rise was important for Benoit. He was being recruited by premier college baseball programs such as Vanderbilt and North Carolina, but Benoit said he’d rather go to a school that he could help turn around.

The fresh start with a whole new coaching staff was also something Benoit liked.

“Last year I think they were 15-15 in the SEC, right in the middle of the pack,” Benoit said. “I felt that it could be a good place for playing opportunity and it looked like they had a good base already for a serious shot at Omaha. I wouldn’t want to go to a school like Vanderbilt that offered me before. I kinda want to take down a team like that. I thought Kentucky had a chance to do that.”

Benoit’s physical and mental ability stood out to the Kentucky staff. He runs a consistent 6.5 60-yard dash and throws 94 miles per hour from the outfield. Benoit said the coaching staff views him as a guy who could make a serious impact in Lexington in the future, which sold him on his opportunity to play for the Wildcats.

“That’s pretty much what hooked me there,” Benoit said. “They were saying I could help them out a lot. It didn’t seem like they were over recruiting at all at Kentucky.”

Benoit is scheduled to visit Kentucky on Aug. 2. It will be his first opportunity to view the existing stadium and facilities, but he will also get a chance to see plans for the future stadium. He’s hoping to meet Mingione for the first time on the visit.

While no stats from his junior year were readily available, Benoit did have an impressive showing in a recent summer league tournament. He went 10 for 24 (.416) at the plate with one double, one triple and seven RBI. Benoit also stole seven bases and threw two runners out at home plate.

For his senior season, Benoit hopes to improve his strength. He’s hit two home runs this summer, but wants to improve that number.

“Right now I’m a gap-to-gap, triples kind of guy,” Benoit said. “I want to get bigger in the weight room and that’s definitely what they’re going to be working on with me at IMG. My defensive side is ready to go for college, but I’m always looking to improve. They think the bigger I get the harder I’ll throw and the harder I’ll hit.”

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