Pulaski Academy senior tennis player Noah Becker said there is a reason he announced his commitment to Notre Dame on March 23 -- nearly seven months ago.
Becker, a five-star recruit and one of the favorites to win the boys singles title at the state Overall tennis tournament that starts today at Burns Park Tennis Center in North Little Rock, said March 23 resonates and burns inside him.
It was on March 23, 2017, that Becker's tennis coach, Michael Caspi, was shot and killed while on a business trip to Costa Rica.
Becker said Caspi was not only his coach, but he was like a second father to him in suburban Chicago, where he lived with his mother and younger brother while his father, Dr. Eugene Becker, worked at his practice in Peru, Ill.
Becker said he would see his father on weekends, but most of the time he was at Caspi's house in Lincolnshire, Ill., where he played and played on Caspi's indoor tennis court.
"I was just at an age, it was a defining moment for me," Becker said last week, before winning the Class 4A singles title with a 6-1, 6-0 victory over Ethan Bacsa of Valley View. "At that time, I chose to move on instead of wallowing in grief.
"I really immersed myself in playing and competing. It's made all the moving around a lot easier, probably for all the wrong reasons."
Becker spent the next several years at the Gomez Tennis Academy boarding school in Naples, Fla., honing his game before his family moved to Little Rock in the summer of 2020.
"It took a few years for me to show substantial improvement because tennis is very much a mental sport," Becker said. "As a 13-year-old, I wasn't really developed in that area."
Becker said he would spend 4-5 hours a day practicing tennis at the Gomez Academy, but the most important aspect of Academy life was the international travel that took place.
"That was the biggest lesson learned, was to be independent and learn how to take care of myself," he said.
Becker said those international trips made him realize that playing professional tennis was not something he aspires to do.
"I don't want to play beyond college," he said. "I've already tried the traveling tour, internationally. I think I've had my fair share of it. And if you're not the best of the best, it's not fun. I know there's guys out there a lot more talented than me."
Becker is better than most at the state level, displaying an overpowering serve and a lightning-bolt forehand that Bacsa had no answer for last week.
"His mental and physical game is beyond reproach," Pulaski Academy Coach Bill Topich said.
Bacsa found that out last week.
"He raised his level," Bacsa said of Becker. "I was unable to raise it with him."
Becker, who is fairly new to competing in Arkansas, said it's a matter of figuring out what the opponent can and can't handle.
"If my serve is working, I'll smack them," Becker said. "If not, I'll just spin it in and it will be just as hard for my opponent.
"It all depends on how he wants to play. If he wants to smack balls, but he's missing, then I'm not going to do much. I'll stand there and hit balls back and wait for him to miss."