Carling Seguso dons the spirit of three women’s tennis generations whenever she steps onto a court to compete.
Since the 2008-2009 season, which followed a championship year for UCLA, the same visor has accompanied the Bruin to every match she has played in the last four years. The senior’s loyalty to her headgear is a reference to a part of UCLA lore that nearly lived on through Seguso starting in her freshman year.
“A senior wore the same hat throughout her four years in college. It was passed down to her from a senior, and she was going to pass it down to me. … But they decided to retire the hat because it was just so gross and faded,” Seguso said.
“Everyone … said it was gross, but I thought “˜Oh, this is so cool!'”
Enthusiasm for keeping a special something within the team led Seguso to put her own spin on the tradition by selecting a bright Bruin blue visor with gold UCLA lettering as her trademark in her first year.
After two Sweet 16s and a semifinal berth, the now-light blue and tan visor will make, at most, six more appearances on the head of Seguso in the NCAA tournament. Today’s opening-round match against Eastern Kentucky marks the start of the senior’s last chance to personally put a championship feather in her beloved cap.
No. 1-seeded UCLA may host as many as two games before flying out to Athens, Ga. for the remainder of the tournament, but senior McCall Jones recognizes how transient success can be even for the team that snapped Stanford’s historic 13-year winning streak at home.
“This is the tournament where people are the most nervous, knowing it’s the end of the year,” Jones said. “We started 21-0 and it doesn’t matter. You can come through in the end, which is the most important part.”
Saving their best for last holds more meaning to Jones and Seguso than anyone, as the frequent doubles partners comprise the only seniors on the team.
“The freshmen care so much, but we care at a different level. This is the end for us,” Jones said.
Seguso’s desire to cement her own place within UCLA history intensifies each time she plays alongside Jones.
“Playing with someone that has the same feeling that “˜(every match) could be our last match’ is a totally different fight than knowing that you have 3 years ahead of you. I feel like I give it more,” Seguso said.
The seniors are not alone in their urgency. Even sophomore Courtney Dolehide, who had summer-long nightmares of last year’s semifinal loss to Florida, understands the importance of capitalizing on opportunities.
“All the (players) that have come back from coming so close last year, losing in the semis, we’ve all tried to tell the freshmen how hard it is to lose when you’re so close,” Dolehide said.
Regardless of how the team finishes, Seguso finds herself hard-pressed to revive the hand-me-down custom she missed out on.
Should no freshman want to continue the tradition, the senior intends to dearly hold onto the discolored accessory. Yet, if the sheen of an NCAA title run is in the cards, nothing could minimize the brilliance of Seguso’s own piece of the UCLA legacy.