KALAMAZOO — As a senior at Hackett Catholic Central, Luke Samra knew that season was his final probability to win a state title.
Enter freshman Alex Dombos.
“Once I noticed Alex for the primary time at Hackett, I stated, ‘Should you play tennis, we’ll win state,’” Samra stated.
The senior nailed it.
Coach Matt Boven paired the 2, and so they not solely gained the No. 1 doubles title, however helped lead the Irish to the 2005 MHSAA Decrease Peninsula Division 4 staff co-championship with Grosse Ile.
The pair defeated T.J. Busscher and Paul Dekorte, from Grandville Calvin Christian, 7-6(2), 6-2 to clinch their flight.
Eighteen years later, Dombos remembers it properly.
“I’m fairly certain we had been down a set level within the first set, and we saved not less than one set level and gained the set. The second was a bit bit simpler,” Dombos recalled.
“I bear in mind match level. I hit a backhand down the road for a winner, after which Luke and I checked out every then and I’m fairly certain we jumped up and did a Bryan Brothers chest bump.”
After commencement, Samra headed to Kalamazoo Valley Neighborhood Faculty after which Marian College in Indianapolis, taking part in tennis and incomes a bachelor’s diploma in enterprise administration.
Dombos remained at Hackett, including a Finals title at No. 2 singles as a sophomore and incomes D4 first-team all-state honors.
“The expertise I gained from taking part in doubles as a freshman was actually helpful,” Dombos stated. “Taking part in doubles helped my web sport in singles, the place there’s a translation of expertise.”
Though Samra and Dombos took totally different paths, they’ve saved in contact by way of texting and social media.
Samra and his spouse, Adrianna Story Samra, dwell in Indianapolis the place he’s a educating professional at Carmel (Ind.) Racquet Membership after an analogous place at Western Michigan College’s West Hills Athletic Membership.
Dombos works in a knowledge science position at Stryker Company in Kalamazoo, “making use of numerous the information evaluation expertise that I realized from highschool, faculty and graduate faculty at Stryker.”
After Hackett, Dombos continued his tennis profession at Kalamazoo Faculty, incomes a level in physics with a minor in arithmetic. He was a four-year letter winner and helped lead the Hornets to 4 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Affiliation tennis titles.
Dombos spent study-abroad time in Aberdeen, Scotland, the place he and his girlfriend Kelsey Hassevoort discovered a solution to hold their tennis expertise from atrophying.
Hassevoort, who’s now his spouse, performed for the Hornets ladies’s tennis staff and “in a short time we discovered the lone tennis court docket within the heart of campus,” he stated.
“When it received too darkish too early within the day, we discovered the Aberdeen Tennis Heart however to get there was a 45-minute journey by way of numerous bus rides.”
After Okay-Faculty, Dombos continued finding out at Michigan State.
“They’ve received a lab on campus known as the Nationwide Superconducting Cyclotron Laboratory, so I received my Ph.D. there in a six-year lengthy program,” he stated.
Subsequent got here three years at Notre Dame for a post-doctoral analysis affiliate place in physics and astronomy.
“My explicit space of physics, there’s numerous elementary analysis a part of it, but additionally sensible functions,” he stated. “Quite a lot of the physics work I did, it’s frequent for individuals to go to a nationwide lab.
“They’re doing analysis that’s normally funded by the federal government. Postdoctoral analysis affiliate positions are much like the residency portion of medical faculty.”
With such in-depth research, tennis has at present pale to the background, though Dombos has tried his hand at pickleball.
Wanting again
Boven, at present the girls and boys tennis coach at Mattawan Excessive Faculty, remembers Hackett’s staff title properly.
“It was actually Kyle Bedford at No. 2 singles and the No. 1 doubles staff that gave us the (2005) title,” he stated. “Alex and Luke appeared to enhance one another. I knew Alex was a really gifted ground-stroker, and Luke’s volleys had been enhancing. Alex was dominant on the baseline and will arrange Luke on the web.”
Since Dombos hardly ever performed doubles whereas competing in USTA occasions, he didn’t have many expectations as a part of a doubles duo.
“Having performed singles for just about all of my tennis at that time, I didn’t see it as a setback, however had an open thoughts and open perspective: Let’s see the place this goes,” he stated.
“We ended up profitable the state title, in order that was thrilling.”
Apart from his highschool tennis success — Dombos didn’t lose a set on the MHSAA Event his first two years — he stated he continued studying from his experiences.
Throughout USTA tournaments, Andrew Devlieger from Grand Rapids NorthPointe Christian was his nemesis.
“I had misplaced to him persistently,” Dombos stated. “I ended up taking part in him in a highschool match (in 2006), and I gained. I used to be like, I can beat him now.
“Within the (2006) finals on the state event, I performed him and gained once more with a greater rating (6-1, 6-2). It was that perception of getting gained within the common season that gave me the idea going into the state event.”
Dombos’ streak of not shedding a set on the MHSAA Event ended throughout the 2007 No. 1 singles semifinals, the place he fell to eventual champ Michael Calderone from Jackson Lumen Christi. Calderone was named Michigan’s Mr. Tennis and performed collegiately at Western Michigan College.
Dombos stated a lot of what he realized in highschool has helped him in his profession, together with stability issues in on a regular basis life.
“As a student-athlete, you’re taking part in tennis and finding out,” he stated. “That’s actually vital for something in life, particularly in graduate faculty, having your consideration pulled in numerous totally different instructions.”
One other benefit was studying teamwork.
“Working as a part of a staff and dealing with new individuals,” he stated. “You’ll be doing that in any sort {of professional} setting; studying that you just don’t succeed alone.
“Generally, there may be additionally the significance of staying lively on your bodily and psychological well being.”
Recommendation he would give to younger athletes right now consists of: “Laborious work shall be vital for something in life, and numerous the teachings you be taught on the tennis court docket shall be very useful later in life. They are often simply as vital as a few of the classes you be taught within the classroom.”
Samra stated tennis has modified since his highschool days.
“The sport is lots quicker now,” he stated. “I attempted to mannequin my sport on Pete Sampras and Andy Roddick, however you possibly can’t play like that anymore.
“Serve and volley is out of the query, too. The ball comes again too quick.”
Samra stated he can’t consider that with all the nice gamers on his Hackett staff, he’s the one one who ended up with tennis as a profession.
“My dad and mom invested some huge cash in me rising up,” he stated. “I’m glad they understand it wasn’t a waste.”
Boven just isn’t stunned by Samra’s profession pursuit.
“I bear in mind how intense Luke was and the way a lot he cared in regards to the staff,” he stated. “I’m so excited he caught with it as a result of he cared for it a lot.”
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PHOTOS (Prime) Luke Samra, left, and Alex Dombos maintain up their championship bracket after profitable the No. 1 doubles flight on the 2005 LP Division 4 Finals. (Center) Samra and Dombos have fun their victory. (Photographs from 2005 courtesy of Luke Samra; present images courtesy of Samra and Dombos.)