Vanatta was named the head coach of the PBA men's lacrosse program in May of 2022 after serving as the interim head coach for the 2022 season.
Vanatta led the Sailfish to their best season in the third year of his tenure. The 'Fish finished 6-5 on the year and 2-5 in Sunshine State Conference play. PBA ran the table in their non-conference slate to start the season 4-0 and earned SSC wins over No. 20 ranked Saint Leo and Embry-Riddle. The Sailfish narrowly missed out on their first SSC Tournament due to a tiebreaker. Defender Hunter Sheffield earned All-SSC third team honors.
In his second season, Vanatta added Brett Bernardo to the coaching staff as an assistant coach and added 13 new players. PBA picked up a dominant win over Davis & Elkins 22-5 on Mar. 7. The ‘Fish tied a program record for most goals in a game when they defeated Quincy 23-11 on Mar. 17. Additionally, freshman Cooper Porter was named to the SSC All-Freshman team.
In his first year at the helm, Vanatta helped the team improve on the field and spiritually, implementing weekly Bible studies with the team. He strives to mirror the lacrosse program with the mission of Palm Beach Atlantic. Vanatta and several of his student-athletes have connections with FCA and the local Christian lacrosse community in Palm Beach County which strives to use the sport as a platform for ministry.
On the field, he exceeded expectations, leading the Sailfish to first-ever wins against Lincoln Memorial, North Greenville, Assumption, and Flagler. At the beginning of March, the team tied the program’s longest winning streak. The Sailfish earned four all-conference honors this season, tying the most all-conference awards in a single season in program history. Other notable achievements from Vanatta’s first season at the helm are Henry Sloyan becoming the program’s career goals leader and defender Gunner Gebelein reaching 200 groundballs and 100 caused turnovers in his career.
A PBA graduate in 2013, Vanatta was a three-year captain of the club team and was selected as an all-conference performer. He helped guide the team to their first-ever conference championship appearance as a player in 2010 and to their first national championship tournament appearance as a coach in 2013. Since graduating, he's served as the defensive coordinator for the club team and assisted with administrative duties including game planning, scheduling, travel and equipment. In addition to his work at PBA he was part of FCA Lacrosse South Florida from 2013-17 and has worked with the Florida Launch of Major League Lacrosse since 2014.
- 2 All-SSC second team honorees
- 3 All-SSC freshman team honorees
| Year |
-Overall- |
-Conference- |
-Notes- |
| W-L |
Pct. |
W-L |
Pct. |
| 2022 |
5-9 |
.357 |
1-6 |
.143 |
|
| 2023 |
2-12 |
.143 |
0-7 |
.000 |
|
| 2024 |
6-5 |
.545 |
2-5 |
.286 |
|
| 3 Seasons |
13-26 |
.334 |
3-18 |
.143 |
|
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