Vivian Segnini was named the head coach for the Winthrop women's tennis program on July 1, 2019. Segnini became just the second head coach in program history.
"This is a very important moment in my life," shared Segnini after her hiring. "It was my goal to become a Division I college coach and doing it at Winthrop, which is my alma mater, means a lot to me. It is a big responsibility as this team has had so much success in the past with
Cid Carvalho as a coach, and it is also an honor for me to continue the program that he has worked so hard to build. I want to put in as much passion and energy as Cid put in in order to continue the success that this program has had athletically and academically. I would like to thank Cid for everything that he has taught me over the years as it got me ready for this position. I was lucky to have such a great mentor. And I would like to thank the [Winthrop University] president, Daniel Mahony, and the athletic director, Ken Halpin, for trusting in me as the women's head coach at Winthrop."
Segnini is a 2017 graduate of Winthrop, earning an undergraduate degree in psychology with a minor in coaching. Segnini served as an assistant coach with Winthrop women's tennis from 2013 through 2018. The Sao Carlos, Brazil, native was a part of four Big South Conference Championship titles (2014, 2016, 2017, 2018), as well as the Eagles' historic NCAA Tournament victory in 2018, and helped coach All-Americans
Megan Kauffman and
Lauren Proctor.
"Vivian made so many wonderful contributions to our women's tennis program while she was with us previously and we couldn't be more excited to be able to bring her back to continue growing what Coach Carvalho has built at Winthrop," said Halpin about the hire.
During the 2019 season Segnini coached at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) as a graduate assistant, helping lead the team to the A-10 Conference Championship and helping coach singles All-American Paola Delgado, while working on her master's degree in sport leadership.
Segnini played professionally for eight years from 2004 to 2012 and reached a WTA world-ranking of No. 275 in singles and No. 244 in doubles. She played as a member of Brazil's national team in the 2010 and 2012 Fed Cup events and played singles and doubles for Brazil in the 2011 Panamerican Games in Guadalajara, Mexico. On two occasions, in October 2008 and October 2011, Segnini was the number one professional player in Brazil.
