Sports Therapist Helping Tampa Catholic Athletes

As any parent knows, the teenage mind is a complex thing. Still forming, still learning about who they are as people and how they may fit into the world as adults.

That goes for high school athletes as well, who have the added pressure of playing for a team but trying to excel individually.

Tampa Catholic High School softball coach Vernon Tatum has been around long enough to know sometimes his players need someone to unload to other than a parent or coach. Someone who understands the ever changing psyche of teens but who also understands the pressure facing athletes.

About three years ago Tatum met Vince Lodato when Tatum was coaching Lodato’s daughter, Christina, on Tatum’s traveling rec team, the Mustangs.

Lodato holds a Master’s degree in Clinical Social Work from Florida State University and a Certificate in Sport and Fitness Psychology from California State University-Dominguez Hills. 

Tatum asked Lodato to work with his TC team during the prep season.

“He brings a level of professionalism and stability,” Tatum said. “You know how emotional high school kids are. He brings consistency and level headedness and helps them deal with situations on a level playing field. He helps them to keep their emotions in check and learn to control what they can and not worry about what they can’t control.

“It’s not just with softball, but with school, their social relationships and their parents. When a lot of the girls have a bad day in school they know they can call him.”

Lodato said he tries to help the girls seek balance in their life. He helps them manage school and parents and relationships, as well a being a good teammate while focusing on excellence as an athlete.

“Then you throw in that they’re trying to achieve all that while still being teenagers,” Lodato said. “It’s about going from dependence to independence developmentally. But it’s also about going from dependence to independence and being self directed and developing a healthy athletic identity.

“What does it mean to set goals and what are goals all about? How do you manage butterflies and jitters, and how do you slow down the game in your head. How do you separate what goes on at home, mom and dad, boyfriend, girlfriend, and focus on what happens on the field, court, track, etc.”

Lodato also works with the Tampa Bay Fire Elite Lacrosse Program, as well as the Tampa Bay Rays, Arizona Diamondbacks and Toronto Blue Jays baseball teams. Players know he’s only a phone call or text away, and all relationships are confidential.

“It takes a couple years to build that trust,” Lodato said. “I’m not here so the coaches can win games. It’s about their [the players] overall social, emotional and psychological development. They’re unformed at that age. The coaches respect that.

“The kids see me as part of the coaching staff; just someone that brings a different skill from the hitting coach or the pitching coach. You have to have professional boundaries.”

The 51-year-old Lodato has been in private practice for adult and family therapy for 22 years. He returned to school for advanced degrees in sports psychology at Florida State University.

He became involved with the Rays 13 years ago through his work with Bay Care Health System at St. Anthony’s Hospital. They provide all of the medical health services for the Rays, and Lodato got involved as part of the teams’ employee assistance program.  

He’s also affiliated with the Florida Sports Performance Institute, which provides performance training profiles for each athlete. Their physical attributes are combined with a mental skills assessment, and game film is then sent to college coaches for prospective scholarships.

“My enjoyment, my motivation, is that I love that teenage age group,” Lodato said. “Those kids are like a gifted musician. Any kid who has an exceptional talent, there are certain pressures on them. I try to help them keep their balance, focus on their goals and use every resource available to them to help them get to where they want to go.”

Tatum said Lodato helps his players develop a routine that helps them deal with the stress of the moment or the big game.

“You see the girls very relaxed and poised and able to deal with situations as they arise,” Tatum said. “They forget what happened in the past and stay in the present.”

Ladato said the key to making the arrangement work is coaches and players being on board with his involvement.

“They have to be willing to come together and look at some basic concepts about team cohesion and being focused on your goals,” Lodato said.