STARKVILLE — When Vann Stuedeman took over as softball coach at Mississippi State University, she and her assistant coaches wanted to change the program’s culture.
One of the unsung heroes in that culture change was strength and conditioning coach Alicia Catlette.
“It is so much fun working with Vann,” Catlette said. “She is the most genuine person I have ever met. The way she is with her players is the way she is with me, her mother, her bus driver, everyone. She really loves her job. I really love mine, too. However, when I am around her, it just makes me want to love it even more.”
Players and coaches have credited Catlette, who is known as “Coach Cat,” for being a major influence in the program’s return to postseason play after a two-year absence. MSU (33-22) will faces Brigham Young University (43-14) at 5 p.m. Thursday in a first-round game of the Eugene Regional hosted by the University of Oregon. Portland State (27-23) will take on Oregon (39-15) at 8 p.m. in the other game. The winners will meet at 4 p.m. Friday
“Coach Cat has been an incredible influence,” MSU sophomore Erin Nesbit said. “Our success started in the fall. She believed in us. She pushed us in ways we had never been pushed before. I think a lot of the programs she put us through helped develop the mental mind-set that made us winners on the field.”
Catlette, who is in her first school year at MSU, works with the student-athletes from the school’s softball, volleyball, women’s tennis and track and field teams. A former college softball player, Catlette took a liking to Stuedeman right away.
“What made my situation unique was we were starting from scratch,” Catlette said. “Vann was new. Her assistants were new. The athletic trainers and academic advisors were new. I think what was so exciting is we could tear everything down and build it back up.
“As strength and conditioning coach, you want the head coach to support what you are trying to do. With Vann, she was supportive, yet she gave us room to do our thing. We really could do whatever we wanted to do. The trust from Vann and (assistant coaches) Beth (Mullins) and Alan (Reach) was critical. We got together on the approach we were going to take with the team. From day one, we wanted a new culture and a new identity.”
Building a new culture started in the weight room. It was fostered by team-bonding retreats and motivational speakers. Catlette was pleased players bought to a new attitude and new spirit in right away.
“What we tried to do was put the players in situations that were difficult, intense, and grueling,” Catlette said. “We wanted them to be a position where they are having to overcome obstacles. If you make the conditioning and the weight room hard, stepping the batter’s box or on the pitcher’s mound is that much easier. We want players placed in situations where they are challenged. If you feel like you have overcome something or achieved something, you feel like that you can do that again.
“I will never give a student-athlete something they can’t do, but it won’t be easy. Situations that are mentally and physically tough in the offseason will make whatever you see a game in that much easier.”
MSU junior outfielder Jessica Cooley led the team with 15 home runs, which was fourth best in the Southeastern Conference. Cooley believes her improvement was as much about physical improvement as it was about mental improvement. Catlette played a role in both.
“We had a lot of team-bonding activities, and that started in the fall during the first week of school,” Cooley said. “Everything was about becoming a team. We had team exercises in the weight room. We had to work together to achieve our goals. The mental mind-set we established started from those first couple of workouts.
“The team took a different approach in everything it did this year. I think a lot of that can be attributed to coach Cat pushing us in new and unique ways.”
Stuedeman, who was hired in June, knew the program had to start quickly. The Bulldogs have built on that fast start and fought their way to third place in the SEC Western Division.
“With coach Catlette, you have someone who is passionate with her student-athletes,” Stuedeman said, “She is a go-getter, and that type of influence is what you want around your players. From the beginning of the fall, we wanted to put in place a belief you live in the moment and anything is possible.”
The primary goal of strength and conditioning remains working with sports medicine to help prevent injuries. But Catlette has seen her career field blossom in the past decade to a point where mental health is equally important to physical health.
An Ohio native, Catlette, 26, credits her softball playing days at Ohio University for helping her train today’s athletes. After finishing at OU, Catlette earned a graduate degree at Texas Tech University, and most recently interned at the University of Tennessee.
While Catlette didn’t waive a runner home or make a pitching change, she still felt exhilarated when MSU was called Sunday night for the NCAA tournament. On Tuesday, she accompanied the rest of the team for its ninth postseason appearance.
“It is all about the athletes,” Catlette said. “To know where they started and to know where they have come, you can take great satisfaction in that. Our goal is to make our players better athletes and better humans. When you see them work hard and reach their goals, you are super excited.
“You finally see the fruits of their labor. It is great when you see them accomplish something they haven’t in quite a while. You know then things have changed and you are real happy about it.”
Scott was sports editor for The Dispatch.
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