Bad luck doesn’t deter the spirit
of Wheaton Warrenville South’s Becker
By Chris Walker
Two years ago on May 16 in Roselle, Abby Becker slid while chasing a loose ball like she had done countless times. But this time she heard a pop.
The Wheaton Warrenville South senior hasn’t played for the Tigers since, missing her junior year because that pop led to knee surgery and extensive rehabilitation. She’s missing her senior year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus and the Illinois stay-at-home order.
“There was probably 10 minutes left in the game and it popped and I went down,” she said. “I didn’t think it was anything too serious. I remember the trainer saying something about how I probably pulled something, hyperextended my knee maybe, and I’d need to take a couple weeks off.”
Two weeks has turned into two years away from Red Grange Field in Wheaton.
“I remember it hurt pretty badly when I did it, but I didn’t think it was anything serious,” she said. “I had broken a foot before and this didn’t seem like anything near as bad.”
Becker is serving as a team captain during this missed season and has tried to make the most of an opportunity that she’s truly honored by, despite the circumstances that require her to lead from afar.
“I was scared that I wouldn’t have a chance to be a captain, that I’d fly under the radar because of missing last year,” she said. “I know on the guys’ side it’s wearing a band and being someone the guys look up to, but with the girls program it’s such a big deal, so I was super excited.”
Returning just two starters, the Tigers were a young team this spring, and filled with uncertainty. Who would get along? Who would start? Who would get the minutes off the bench? Who would lead? Who would get hurt? Who would stay healthy? Who would spark the squad? Who could have imagined that a pandemic would wipe away an entire sports season?
Among the 28 players on the roster, the Tigers had 18 first-year varsity letter-winners.
“I was super excited both with playing and in meeting all the new girls,” Becker said. “It was kind of scary since all the others graduated so it was a completely different team, it totally was. But the two or three weeks that we had together, we had chemistry. I liked all the girls, and we met the night before they canceled school for team bonding and that was it.”
One of those first-year letters went to senior Abby Dannegger, one of Becker’s BFFs who solely played club the past three years.
“Her (Becker) being on the team as one of my best friends, and having other friends and peers on the team, made it really easy to transition,” Dannegger said. “I definitely looked forward to playing with her again since we hadn’t played together since middle school. With her being captain, I knew she would make it a really fun year.”
It’s a shame no one will know how well the two would’ve played together.
“She is a very hardworking player, especially coming back after a long ACL injury,” Dannegger said. “She’s a great person and friend. She has a very positive attitude and always makes things fun even when they are hard. She’s a really fun spirit and it brings the energy up around her.”
That she’s strong enough to maintain that spirit, despite being sidelined for two years says a lot about her character.
“I think she’s doing as well as one can,” Tigers coach Guy Callipari said. “I think seeing past this is taking a lot longer than say others that have come to grips with it. It’s unfortunate, but that’s what the reality is and that’s too bad. It was a long time coming.”
What can be lost in the chaos and uncertainty of this season is that the girls really thought they were going to have one. They worked in the off-season for it. Tryouts were held tryouts, and the girls work in the offseason showed. The team began practicing for games. They had a schedule of teams all set to play.
“She had taken major steps coming in and was looking forward to it, coming in in good health and being the leader and showing so well,” Callipari said. “There was a possibility for her as striker. We hadn’t committed to that, but she had gravitated to it. And she’s a strong kid, so playing into her feet with her back to goal would’ve been an easy way to cover 20 yards and allows us to move forward and work in combination. Plus, she has a little bit of a step to get behind so there’s a lot there she could certainly offer.”
Callipari could’ve used Becker in a defender role. Likewise, he also had the option of putting Dannegger, Becca Hauenstein and Sam Buol back there with her as an attempt of constructing an potentially impenetrable backline.
“But of course that’s four marquee players and leaves many layers to fill,” he said. “You have the ability of keeping the backline on their heels and hope for the best.
"I wasn’t sure where we were going, but we were looking at both situations going in, no doubt.”
Becker hasn’t forgotten what it was like playing on the varsity squad as a sophomore. While she didn’t waste any time proving that she could play at that level, she was still overawed a bit being the newcomer among upperclassmen.
“I remember being young and intimidated and seeing the older girls try to make me feel normal and (make things) fun. And there’s a big difference between freshmen and seniors from maturity and experiences. I remember feeling super welcome from the girls who were so willing to be funny and carefree with team bonding and stuff.
“They were the ones who kept reminding us that soccer is super fun. So it’s sad that we’re missing out on the friendships and experiences we could’ve had.”
After playing on the JV1 team as a freshman, Becker earned a spot on the 2018 team that enjoyed a successful 15-8-0 campaign that included a regional championship.
“Coach Callipari tries to get everyone playing time and that helped me with my confidence,” she said. “If you’re getting playing time I think you feel you belong, but it was still scary. I played in a lot of different positions and then moved to striker, which I liked. It was a talented team so getting playing time served as validation that I belonged there.”
Said Callipari, “She had some pretty good time when she was younger with that group because she fit in well, has space and is courageous, big and strong. She was as big then as she is now so she was a solid athlete and could hold her own when matched up and with everyone else.”
Becker’s injury, which came in a 4-0 victory over the host Lancers in the Class 3A Lake Park regional semifinal in 2018, severely changed the direction of her high school playing days. What impact would she have made on last year’s 14-5-2 team if she were healthy after showing what she could do the year before? What would she and the Tigers have done this spring?
“After it first happened, I figured at the worst I’ll have my junior year,” she said. “Then, when it took so long to recover, and I did play a little club (soccer) before senior year, I end up not having my senior year.”
As disappointing as the last two years have been soccer-wise for Becker, there was some good that came out of the injury.
“When I tore my ACL I thought about the silver lining, that it gave me a chance to try or take up different things,” she said. “I’d played soccer all my life and it always sounds extreme, but it’s been a part of my identity.”
Acknowledging that she found herself taking school a little more seriously, and even enjoying her classes a little more, Becker found herself attracted to her AP biology class more and more.
“I took it junior year and we did a unit on genetics and talked about a new field, epigenetics,” she said. “I talked to my teacher about it and there isn’t much research in this new field, but it’s pretty relevant. So I was super interested in wanting to learn more. There’s an AP psychology class that has stuff that goes hand-in-hand with it. So I’m going to go into biology, pre-med (in college) and see where that takes me.”
Becker definitely had time to think about her future as she rehabilitated her knee, a process that proved more difficult than expected.
“Rehab was pretty rough,” she said. “I think I was kind of on the end of it being pretty bad from what I understand. My doctor and physical therapist said if you’re in shape it should be an easy recovery so I thought, ‘Sweet, I’ll be cleared in February/March,’ and you want to believe you can do even better than what they expect.”
The unexpected return of tendonitis thwarted that way of thinking.
“I would go to physical therapy and they’d give me a job and stuff, and I would get an aching pain in front of my knee cap, and it kind of hindered me from doing the right form at physical therapy so I had to stop,” she said. “They made me take a one-to-two-month break to rest. I took the post-test that they give you to clear you, and I didn’t pass. They couldn’t clear me in good conscience because my knee was weak and sore. I had to give it a break and was out for longer than I expected.”
Fortunately she was able to return to the soccer field with her club team prior to the spring season, giving her a final chance to really play the game like she’s been trained to play before she begins college at the University of Wisconsin in Madison this fall.
That will certainly be a great new experience for her, and one she sort of believed was going to probably happen in Madison.
“I kind of knew deep down that I was going to end up there,” she said. “My mom went there and my (maternal) grandparents live like five minutes from the campus. They used to take us to 'Grandparents University' every year for like seven years so I was familiar with the campus and wanted to go somewhere within driving distance so I could go home and visit. ... I love Madison. It feels right.”
Mom was a swimmer at Wisconsin, so Becker certainly owes some of her competitive fire from her upbringing.
“I love the competitiveness aspect of her, and I have it too,” she said. “It’s one of those things I think I’ve developed over the years. You sometimes come across a player who is too aggressive and pushes you down or something and years ago I might’ve acted hurt or subbed out, but now I’m motivated to beat them, and I get that from her.
"That’s one of the things I miss now. I miss the healthy competitiveness; that individual feeling that they’re not going to get to me, yhey’re not going to beat me.”
Born the day after 9/11 and now graduating in a pandemic, Becker certainly has life that has not been immune from worldwide tragedies.
“I think all of this has been so eye-opening for me,” she said. “I talked to a friend when it all started, and it was kind of crazy to think that this is the most newsworthy thing that has ever happened to us. Born the day after 9/11 and now graduating after this (pandemic) happened. I’ve seen a lot of posts from people around my age now. Seniors are supporting each other now more than ever since we all came into this world around the same time and now this.”
She’s also seen how heroic those all over the world have responded to the pandemic, making an impact day after day after day. It’s inspiring, and living through these times while wanting to get in there and make a difference has Becker pointed to a lifetime of greatness.
“You see how these people work, and the research that is being done and how they selflessly help other people,” she said. “You see videos of nurses, of them taking off masks and they have 12 rings around their mouth because it’s necessary protection after working a 12-hour shift. It’s inspiring. It shows you how people’s work can directly affect the lives and well-being of so many people.”
Added Callipari: “It’s an unfortunate story, but I think the silver living is we didn’t shut (the team communication) down. We kept the story going, and she looked as good earlier this year as I had ever seen her.
“her community, teammates and program (were) a priority. And we had a lot to do with those three areas over the course of the last month and she did exceptionally well with those responsibilities.
“Hopefully she, and the rest of the seniors, can look back 10 years from now and there is a story and not an empty byline, a chapter without just a front page. There’s been a lot here from beginning to the end.”
of Wheaton Warrenville South’s Becker
By Chris Walker
Two years ago on May 16 in Roselle, Abby Becker slid while chasing a loose ball like she had done countless times. But this time she heard a pop.
The Wheaton Warrenville South senior hasn’t played for the Tigers since, missing her junior year because that pop led to knee surgery and extensive rehabilitation. She’s missing her senior year due to the outbreak of the coronavirus and the Illinois stay-at-home order.
“There was probably 10 minutes left in the game and it popped and I went down,” she said. “I didn’t think it was anything too serious. I remember the trainer saying something about how I probably pulled something, hyperextended my knee maybe, and I’d need to take a couple weeks off.”
Two weeks has turned into two years away from Red Grange Field in Wheaton.
“I remember it hurt pretty badly when I did it, but I didn’t think it was anything serious,” she said. “I had broken a foot before and this didn’t seem like anything near as bad.”
Becker is serving as a team captain during this missed season and has tried to make the most of an opportunity that she’s truly honored by, despite the circumstances that require her to lead from afar.
“I was scared that I wouldn’t have a chance to be a captain, that I’d fly under the radar because of missing last year,” she said. “I know on the guys’ side it’s wearing a band and being someone the guys look up to, but with the girls program it’s such a big deal, so I was super excited.”
Returning just two starters, the Tigers were a young team this spring, and filled with uncertainty. Who would get along? Who would start? Who would get the minutes off the bench? Who would lead? Who would get hurt? Who would stay healthy? Who would spark the squad? Who could have imagined that a pandemic would wipe away an entire sports season?
Among the 28 players on the roster, the Tigers had 18 first-year varsity letter-winners.
“I was super excited both with playing and in meeting all the new girls,” Becker said. “It was kind of scary since all the others graduated so it was a completely different team, it totally was. But the two or three weeks that we had together, we had chemistry. I liked all the girls, and we met the night before they canceled school for team bonding and that was it.”
One of those first-year letters went to senior Abby Dannegger, one of Becker’s BFFs who solely played club the past three years.
“Her (Becker) being on the team as one of my best friends, and having other friends and peers on the team, made it really easy to transition,” Dannegger said. “I definitely looked forward to playing with her again since we hadn’t played together since middle school. With her being captain, I knew she would make it a really fun year.”
It’s a shame no one will know how well the two would’ve played together.
“She is a very hardworking player, especially coming back after a long ACL injury,” Dannegger said. “She’s a great person and friend. She has a very positive attitude and always makes things fun even when they are hard. She’s a really fun spirit and it brings the energy up around her.”
That she’s strong enough to maintain that spirit, despite being sidelined for two years says a lot about her character.
“I think she’s doing as well as one can,” Tigers coach Guy Callipari said. “I think seeing past this is taking a lot longer than say others that have come to grips with it. It’s unfortunate, but that’s what the reality is and that’s too bad. It was a long time coming.”
What can be lost in the chaos and uncertainty of this season is that the girls really thought they were going to have one. They worked in the off-season for it. Tryouts were held tryouts, and the girls work in the offseason showed. The team began practicing for games. They had a schedule of teams all set to play.
“She had taken major steps coming in and was looking forward to it, coming in in good health and being the leader and showing so well,” Callipari said. “There was a possibility for her as striker. We hadn’t committed to that, but she had gravitated to it. And she’s a strong kid, so playing into her feet with her back to goal would’ve been an easy way to cover 20 yards and allows us to move forward and work in combination. Plus, she has a little bit of a step to get behind so there’s a lot there she could certainly offer.”
Callipari could’ve used Becker in a defender role. Likewise, he also had the option of putting Dannegger, Becca Hauenstein and Sam Buol back there with her as an attempt of constructing an potentially impenetrable backline.
“But of course that’s four marquee players and leaves many layers to fill,” he said. “You have the ability of keeping the backline on their heels and hope for the best.
"I wasn’t sure where we were going, but we were looking at both situations going in, no doubt.”
Becker hasn’t forgotten what it was like playing on the varsity squad as a sophomore. While she didn’t waste any time proving that she could play at that level, she was still overawed a bit being the newcomer among upperclassmen.
“I remember being young and intimidated and seeing the older girls try to make me feel normal and (make things) fun. And there’s a big difference between freshmen and seniors from maturity and experiences. I remember feeling super welcome from the girls who were so willing to be funny and carefree with team bonding and stuff.
“They were the ones who kept reminding us that soccer is super fun. So it’s sad that we’re missing out on the friendships and experiences we could’ve had.”
After playing on the JV1 team as a freshman, Becker earned a spot on the 2018 team that enjoyed a successful 15-8-0 campaign that included a regional championship.
“Coach Callipari tries to get everyone playing time and that helped me with my confidence,” she said. “If you’re getting playing time I think you feel you belong, but it was still scary. I played in a lot of different positions and then moved to striker, which I liked. It was a talented team so getting playing time served as validation that I belonged there.”
Said Callipari, “She had some pretty good time when she was younger with that group because she fit in well, has space and is courageous, big and strong. She was as big then as she is now so she was a solid athlete and could hold her own when matched up and with everyone else.”
Becker’s injury, which came in a 4-0 victory over the host Lancers in the Class 3A Lake Park regional semifinal in 2018, severely changed the direction of her high school playing days. What impact would she have made on last year’s 14-5-2 team if she were healthy after showing what she could do the year before? What would she and the Tigers have done this spring?
“After it first happened, I figured at the worst I’ll have my junior year,” she said. “Then, when it took so long to recover, and I did play a little club (soccer) before senior year, I end up not having my senior year.”
As disappointing as the last two years have been soccer-wise for Becker, there was some good that came out of the injury.
“When I tore my ACL I thought about the silver lining, that it gave me a chance to try or take up different things,” she said. “I’d played soccer all my life and it always sounds extreme, but it’s been a part of my identity.”
Acknowledging that she found herself taking school a little more seriously, and even enjoying her classes a little more, Becker found herself attracted to her AP biology class more and more.
“I took it junior year and we did a unit on genetics and talked about a new field, epigenetics,” she said. “I talked to my teacher about it and there isn’t much research in this new field, but it’s pretty relevant. So I was super interested in wanting to learn more. There’s an AP psychology class that has stuff that goes hand-in-hand with it. So I’m going to go into biology, pre-med (in college) and see where that takes me.”
Becker definitely had time to think about her future as she rehabilitated her knee, a process that proved more difficult than expected.
“Rehab was pretty rough,” she said. “I think I was kind of on the end of it being pretty bad from what I understand. My doctor and physical therapist said if you’re in shape it should be an easy recovery so I thought, ‘Sweet, I’ll be cleared in February/March,’ and you want to believe you can do even better than what they expect.”
The unexpected return of tendonitis thwarted that way of thinking.
“I would go to physical therapy and they’d give me a job and stuff, and I would get an aching pain in front of my knee cap, and it kind of hindered me from doing the right form at physical therapy so I had to stop,” she said. “They made me take a one-to-two-month break to rest. I took the post-test that they give you to clear you, and I didn’t pass. They couldn’t clear me in good conscience because my knee was weak and sore. I had to give it a break and was out for longer than I expected.”
Fortunately she was able to return to the soccer field with her club team prior to the spring season, giving her a final chance to really play the game like she’s been trained to play before she begins college at the University of Wisconsin in Madison this fall.
That will certainly be a great new experience for her, and one she sort of believed was going to probably happen in Madison.
“I kind of knew deep down that I was going to end up there,” she said. “My mom went there and my (maternal) grandparents live like five minutes from the campus. They used to take us to 'Grandparents University' every year for like seven years so I was familiar with the campus and wanted to go somewhere within driving distance so I could go home and visit. ... I love Madison. It feels right.”
Mom was a swimmer at Wisconsin, so Becker certainly owes some of her competitive fire from her upbringing.
“I love the competitiveness aspect of her, and I have it too,” she said. “It’s one of those things I think I’ve developed over the years. You sometimes come across a player who is too aggressive and pushes you down or something and years ago I might’ve acted hurt or subbed out, but now I’m motivated to beat them, and I get that from her.
"That’s one of the things I miss now. I miss the healthy competitiveness; that individual feeling that they’re not going to get to me, yhey’re not going to beat me.”
Born the day after 9/11 and now graduating in a pandemic, Becker certainly has life that has not been immune from worldwide tragedies.
“I think all of this has been so eye-opening for me,” she said. “I talked to a friend when it all started, and it was kind of crazy to think that this is the most newsworthy thing that has ever happened to us. Born the day after 9/11 and now graduating after this (pandemic) happened. I’ve seen a lot of posts from people around my age now. Seniors are supporting each other now more than ever since we all came into this world around the same time and now this.”
She’s also seen how heroic those all over the world have responded to the pandemic, making an impact day after day after day. It’s inspiring, and living through these times while wanting to get in there and make a difference has Becker pointed to a lifetime of greatness.
“You see how these people work, and the research that is being done and how they selflessly help other people,” she said. “You see videos of nurses, of them taking off masks and they have 12 rings around their mouth because it’s necessary protection after working a 12-hour shift. It’s inspiring. It shows you how people’s work can directly affect the lives and well-being of so many people.”
Added Callipari: “It’s an unfortunate story, but I think the silver living is we didn’t shut (the team communication) down. We kept the story going, and she looked as good earlier this year as I had ever seen her.
“her community, teammates and program (were) a priority. And we had a lot to do with those three areas over the course of the last month and she did exceptionally well with those responsibilities.
“Hopefully she, and the rest of the seniors, can look back 10 years from now and there is a story and not an empty byline, a chapter without just a front page. There’s been a lot here from beginning to the end.”