Story and photos by Ron Cioffi/USTA Southern
An ornate monogram style was selected by the South Carolina team. |
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Providence Plantation's N.C. Amy Stephan, left, and Kathlene Johnstone, displayed t-shirts. Tiffany Vaughn, right, plays on court. |
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Team uniforms – whether they be identical shirts or dresses or skirts – have been the rage for years. For the first time in memory, however, monograming is making an appearance at these sectional championships.
With their initials displayed on the front of their visors or on the back of their dresses, players can declare their identity much like “Brady” on the back of a jersey.
We counted three teams whose players had wrapped up their names in three-letter monograms and had a chance to sit down with two.
The women’s 2.5 team out of Lexington, S.C., had an advantage over others, as one of their players, Kristin Senn, is in the monogramming business.
Rebecca Sanders Keilty and teammate Amanda Frick Minnett enthusiastically reported on how they individualized their outfits.
“We wore these at the state championships. So now we’re wearing them to the section championships,” Keilty said.
“If you can monogram it, we will do it,” added Minnett.
The team had outfits using two color combinations – navy/white and peach/navy – with monograms on the backs of dresses and in the lower left-hand corner of their skirts. These monograms used a traditional ornate style.
Another team made sure their monograms were in plain sight. Sporting black visors displaying white lettering with serifs, the women’s 2.5 North Carolina team made their own fashion statement.
"Everyone in Charlotte is doing it,” said singles player Tiffany Vaughn. “We got the idea for the monogram when we saw an opponents’ black visors.”
The North Carolina team also made sure they had black T-shirts carrying “Providence Plantation,” a large subdivision in South Charlotte.
USTA Southern staff were on the lookout for the third team with monograms. But we probably were too blinded by their great tennis skills to see their initials!