How mental toughness and intentional training gave Florida State Softball’s Team 40 an edge

Team 40’s first meeting was spent observing Team 39’s collapse. Reliving each moment. Remembering the disappointment. I am tasting the tears. The 39th team in Florida State softball history dominated the 2022 regular season and ACC Tournament. The Seminoles were anticipated to repeat their performance in the NCAA regional and super regional rounds, advancing to the Women’s College World Series for the sixth time in eight seasons.

They were ranked number two in the country. Their record after run-rule victories against Howard and USF in the first rounds of the Tallahassee Regional was a stunning 54-5. They had not lost a game in over a month. Then the unthinkable occurred. In the championship round, Mississippi State suffered two consecutive losses. A 5-0 snooze in which the Seminoles managed only two hits. Then came a surprising 4-3 setback, erasing an early FSU advantage in an instant.

The season came to an end abruptly. In her postgame press conference, Florida State coach Lonni Alameda attributed all of the credit to Mississippi State. She stated that her Seminoles gave everything they had, and that one poor day at the park should not detract from a “historic” season. “It’s more about today was Mississippi State’s day; nothing went for us,” Alameda stated. “Tip your hat to them and wish them luck as they move forward.” But, either at the time or later on, Alameda recognized this wasn’t totally true.

While her powerhouse Florida State team was picking up victory after victory during the 2022 season, the veteran head coach wasn’t always pleased with the Seminoles’ performance.

“I believe we won a lot of games, but perhaps not in the right way,” Alameda said recently in an interview with Warchant. “But we rode out the win and just said, ‘Good job, we won!'” That is certainly not how Team 40 operates. Not in the least. There is accountability after each game, whether it is won, lost, or drawn. The Seminoles hold “Tell the Truth Mondays,” during which players, coaches, and staff members can express any grievances they may have.

Following the Seminoles’ midweek shutout victory last month, Alameda couldn’t wait to return to the meeting room with her players the next day. “I didn’t really like the way we won that game,” she stated before addressing the team. Then she conveyed the message to Team 40 in no unclear terms. “We need to win our process,” she explained. “And not always be about the ‘W.'”