Ben Zacher '20 M'25 enters his fifth season within Norwich University Athletic Communications in 2026–27, serving as Associate Director of Athletic Communications and helping oversee the department's day-to-day operations while supporting media relations and communications efforts for all 23 Norwich varsity programs.
Zacher originally joined the department in August 2022 as Broadcast & Video Coordinator before earning a promotion to Associate Director later that fall. He currently serves as the primary athletic communications contact for football, men's and women's cross country, men's and women's ice hockey, men's and women's lacrosse, and men's tennis. Across his time at Norwich, he has served as the primary contact for 17 of the University's 23 varsity programs, giving him experience across nearly every area of the department's sport coverage and game-day operation.
In 2026, Zacher was selected to participate in the NCAA Division III Athletic Communicators Emerging Elite Program, joining a national cohort of 30 professionals chosen for the three-day leadership and professional development experience at the NCAA national office in Indianapolis. Developed in partnership with the Division III Sports Information Directors Association (D3SIDA) and College Sports Communicators (CSC), the program focuses on leadership, staff development, collaboration, professional growth, and the changing landscape of collegiate athletic communications. Zacher will participate in the program Dec. 6–8, 2026.
The selection follows another national professional honor for Zacher, who was named to the College Sports Communicators 30 Under 30 Class of 2025 in December 2025. The award recognizes emerging professionals across collegiate athletics for outstanding achievement and professional promise. A record 183 nominations were submitted for the 2025 class, with Zacher one of just nine NCAA Division III professionals selected among the 30 national honorees.
Zacher's responsibilities at Norwich span website management, statistics, live broadcasts, photography and video coordination, social media, press releases, game-day staffing, championship coverage, student-worker supervision, and departmental planning. His role has increasingly expanded beyond individual sport coverage into broader departmental operations, personnel development, special projects, and event management.
Among his most visible projects has been the redesign and launch of the Norwich Athletics website through SIDEARM Sports, as well as the implementation of the University's Digital Athletic Hall of Fame. The latter debuted as part of a 2024–25 branding initiative and now includes both an online archive and touchscreen components within the Norwich Athletic Center, preserving and promoting the University's athletic history. Zacher also serves as the primary informational advisor to the Norwich University Athletic Hall of Fame Selection Committee, coordinating historical materials and nominations while serving as emcee for the annual induction ceremony.
His championship and event responsibilities have continued to expand throughout his tenure. Zacher helped lead Norwich's hosting of the 2024 and 2025 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Cross Country Championships, coordinating meet-day communications and operations across campus facilities. In 2026, he served as the official scorer for the GNAC Men's Golf Championships hosted by Norwich. He also assists with annual department events and special competitions, including the Ed Hockenbury Basketball Classic, Chris Munn 7s Rugby Tournament, Senior Day ceremonies, NCAA postseason events, and conference championship operations across multiple sports.
Zacher has also taken a major role in Norwich's student-athlete recognition efforts, coordinating nominations and promotional campaigns for conference, regional, and national honors. During his tenure, Norwich has produced four GNAC Athletes of the Year across three academic years: Benjamin Stark '24, Will Thompson '25, Seth Varin '26, and Reilly Laitala '26. He also coordinates Norwich's College Sports Communicators Academic All-District and Academic All-America efforts across eligible sports, including the successful Academic All-America nominations of Ann-Frederique Guay '23 of women's ice hockey and Madison DeCota '27 of softball.
One of the department's largest areas of growth during Zacher's tenure has come through student staffing. He supervises Norwich Athletic Communications' work-study operation, which has grown from three students when he arrived to more than a dozen contributors working in statistics, photography, videography, broadcasting, and game production. His responsibilities include hiring, scheduling, training, and mentoring students from both the Corps of Cadets and civilian student body in live production, statistics, writing, visual content, and other areas of athletic communications.
His prior experience includes freelance broadcasting and media roles at Howard Payne University, Goucher College, and the Vermont Mountaineers. With the Mountaineers, he helped lead media operations during the 2019 New England Collegiate Baseball League All-Star Game while serving in social media and press box roles. At Norwich, he began calling basketball and lacrosse games during the 2021–22 academic year before transitioning into a full-time role. His broadcasting experience includes the 2022 GNAC Men's Lacrosse Championship and Norwich's first NCAA Division III Men's Lacrosse Tournament victory that spring.
As a Norwich student, Zacher worked extensively within the Department of Athletic Communications as a statistician, camera operator, and media assistant. He contributed to coverage of the 2018 NCAA Division III Women's Ice Hockey Championship, assisted with athletic record book projects, and served as team manager for the Norwich women's basketball program from 2016 to 2020.
Zacher graduated magna cum laude from Norwich in 2020 with a Bachelor of Science in Communications and minors in English and Writing. He earned his Master of Science in Leadership from Norwich in February 2025.
