BG Athletics Celebrates Women's History Month: Ginny McGee Beneke

Throughout the month of March, BGSUFalcons.com will be highlighting some of the women who have impacted the University, the community and the athletics department. From pioneers to more recent members of the department, Matt Markey will be providing the stories of our history. Our sixth story of this series highlights lacrosse and field hockey star Ginny McGee Beneke.

Part One - Hayley (Wiemer) Bradford
Part Two - Valerie Newell
Part Three - Stephanie Heldt-Sheller
Part Four - Denise Van De Walle
Part Five - Marny Oestreng-Unnli

A year ago, BGSUFalcons.com produced a similar series for Black History Month. Fans can review and re-read those stories by CLICKING HERE.

As a Falcon, Ginny McGee Beneke excelled in sports that demanded constant motion. Four decades after she ended a brilliant two-sport run at BGSU, there is every indication she has taken that same approach in her business career.

McGee, who played four years of lacrosse and three years of field hockey, earned a business degree from Bowling Green and then went on to add an MBA in marketing from George Washington University and then completed the executive management program at the prestigious Wharton School of Business to continue expanding her resume.

Her work has taken her from Washington D.C. to Connecticut, Philadelphia, Boston, Florida, London, and now San Diego. She has worked in the high-tech field and in higher education, and been with large corporations, small firms, and started her own enterprises.

"I had a wonderful experience at Bowling Green with my teammates and coach, and I saw the success that came from working together," she said. "I learned that model approach, and I take that with me into the workplace wherever I am."

McGee has worked with AT&T, Exxon, and Xerox corporations, and been the CEO of a test preparation company, and president of a golf academy. In her days on campus at BGSU, she was also a housing resident advisor, an orientation leader, was active in the BGSU Ski Club and the Student Government Association, was a volunteer with the crisis phone program, and served a congressional internship in Washington D.C. in the winter quarter of 1976.

"It was a very busy time, and sometimes hectic, but as I look back on my experience as a student-athlete, there were definitely so many things that have helped me with my career," said McGee, who once scored 10 goals in a 13-1 BG lacrosse win over Ohio State. "With just the demands of juggling academics with athletics, you learn discipline and prioritization, and you also understand that you have made a commitment that you need to keep."

A naturally gifted athlete who matched her significant skill level with an unwavering push to excel, McGee began playing competitive tennis following her move to Florida and was ranked in the top five players in the state in her age group in the 1990s. After moving to California, she was the top-ranked player in her age group in San Diego from 1999-2005, and then again in 2016. She said her practice regimen from her days as a Falcon stuck with her over the decades.

"Even if it was snowing outside, you still went to practice, and the approach is the same in the work environment as it is in sports," said McGee, who now works as a consultant assisting companies with their business strategies. "You make a commitment to do a certain job to the best of your ability, and you stick to that commitment."

McGee said she viewed her role as a student-athlete at BGSU as one of being a face of the university, as well as a role model for younger athletes.

"You are out there representing your team and your university as a female athlete, and as the younger players come along, you are their role model," she said. "It is the same thing in business – you are the brand image for your company or your employer, and you are always representing them."

She said her background as a multi-sport student-athlete has played a big part in the success she has had in a career that has covered a wide spectrum of the business world.

"The teamwork, the understanding and accepting roles and responsibilities – those are things you learn in athletics that are really important in the workplace," she said. "Athletes in general understand that sort of dynamic, that everyone has their strengths and abilities, and you need to put people in the right position and utilize their strengths. I learned those things many years ago as a student-athlete, and I use them every day in my career."

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