PODCAST

The Mental Matchup

Presented by Morgan’s Message, The Mental Matchup is a podcast focused on opening up dialogue about athlete mental health. Co-hosts Kat Zempolich and Schuyler DeBree are both former division one athletes who attended Duke University, and are passionate about making sure no one feels alone in their mental health challenges.

health & fitness mental health

All Episodes

Episode 120 - Rares Judele

The Mental Matchup ·

2024/01/16

This week, we are joined by Rares Judele during our final episode of Season 6. Rares is a Morgan’s Message Ambassador and mental health advocate. He was born in Romania and attends Wooster High School in Wooster, OH. Rares is a multi-sport athlete who shares mental health's role in his own life. He speaks about switching sports, dealing with his emotions, and learning how to vocalize what he is going through. Rares touches on an important topic, adversity, and the impact that it has had on his

Episode 119 - Abbey Sallila

The Mental Matchup ·

2024/01/09

In this week’s episode, Abbey Sallila joins Kat on The Mental Matchup. Abbey is a junior at Clarkson University in Potsdam, NY, majoring in psychology and is also a member of the women’s lacrosse team. During her sophomore year of college, Abbey faced multiple injury setbacks and talks us through how she dealt with each experience and overcame them. She highlights the importance of a strong support system and you can also go check out her story featured on The Mental Matchup Stories site titled

Episode 118 - Emily Weible talks about brain health

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/12/28

A special episode this week, Emily Weible joins The Mental Matchup to chat about brain health and mental health. Emily graduated from Washington State University in 2019 and is currently in grad school at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, teaching an undergraduate course and a lab each semester. Emily recently started a coaching business called Brain+Body Foundations where she offers strength and conditioning and mentorship platforms.

Episode 117 - Emily Weible

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/12/26

This week, Emily Weible joins The Mental Matchup. Emily graduated from Washington State University in 2019 and is currently in grad school at the University of Missouri-St. Louis, teaching an undergraduate course and a lab each semester. Emily rowed in college at WSU and opens up about the importance of finding a community outside of sport, educating others about suicidality and self advocating for yourself. Emily recently started a coaching business called Brain+Body Foundations where she offers

Episode 116 - Brooke Kelly

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/12/19

This week on The Mental Matchup, Brooke Kelly joins the podcast. Brooke is on the women’s lacrosse team at Lander University. She opens up about how her love of lacrosse started, how she learned that it’s ok when things don't go perfectly, and what drew her to the school she eventually transferred to. Brooke emphasizes the importance of being grateful and we are so grateful that she is on The Mental Matchup!Check out The Mental Matchup hereCheck out Morgan's Message hereFollow Morgan's Message

Episode 115 - Paws for Patrick with Dan Maigler and...

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/12/12

#115: This week, Dan Maigler and Mags Roemer join Kat on The Mental Matchup. Dan and Mags both work for Paws for Patrick, a non-profit organization connecting young people with Emotional Support Animals and therapy dogs to help with their mental health. They discuss why the organization was founded, the benefits of having an emotional support animal and how Paws for Patrick works!Check out Dan’s podcast, Not Allowed to DieFind out more about Morgan’s Message here Follow Morgan’s Message hereSubmit

Episode 114 - Cami Nelsen

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/12/05

This week, Cami Nelsen joins The Mental Matchup. Cami grew up in Lancaster, CA and attends Antelope Valley College, where she plays volleyball. Cami has had her share of ups and downs, both mentally and physically, and we get into everything during this episode. She shares her chronic kidney disease diagnosis, anemia episodes, and struggles with disordered eating. This past September, Cami spoke in Washington, DC on Capitol Hill with the Eating Disorders Coalition. We are so grateful to have Cami on

Episode 113 - Kirsten and Joey Early

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/11/30

#113 - This week on The Mental Matchup, we are joined by a mother-daughter duo, Kirsten and Joey Early. Kirsten, an Ambassador for Morgan’s Message, and her family moved from the US to England and throughout the episode, discusses the differences in culture, making new friends, and adapting to life across the Atlantic Ocean. The pair also shares both of their unique experiences when it came to Joey’s disordered eating. They talk about everything from the fear and concern of a parent to Joey’s

Episode 112 - Paul Macrina

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/11/21

In this week’s episode, Paul Macrina joins The Mental Matchup. Paul is from Wrentham, Massachusetts. Growing up, he was on the football and lacrosse team as well as a member of student council. Paul started his own podcast called Smoove Talk Podcast after learning more about young athletes taking their own life. His mission is closely aligned with The Mental Matchup and we are honored to have Paul come on the show this week!

Episode 111 - ChiChi Odo

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/11/14

This week, we are excited to welcome Chibuike “ChiChi” Odo to the podcast. ChiChi is a first generation Nigerian-American, his parents being originally from Nigeria and eventually settling in McKinney, TX. After growing up in Texas, ChiChi went on to play football and was pre-med at Davidson College in North Carolina. He talks about the struggle to balance academics and athletics in addition to experiencing multiple injuries throughout his 4 years in college. ChiChi was also honored as a 2022 Thomas

Episode 110 - Andrew Mackiewicz

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/11/07

#110: This week, we are joined by Andrew Mackiewicz on the podcast. Andrew is a fencer who went to Penn State and graduated in 2018. Growing up, Andrew’s family bounced around between the US and Canada after immigrating from Poland. Andrew opens up about his own mental health struggles as a collegiate athlete and how important talking to others is when you're going through a darker period. Andrew also opens up even more about his story in a written piece featured on our Mental Matchup Stories site,

Episode 109 - Niki Castle

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/31

In this week’s episode, Kat is joined by Niki Castle. Niki grew up in San Diego and went to a top-ranked high school for women’s basketball. She went to Washington State, where she played basketball and graduated in 2000. During her freshman year, Niki began to experience changes in her health but had difficulty explaining what was wrong. Throughout the episode, she opens up about these experiences and a diagnosis that she ran from for years. Niki now works with organizations like NAMI's Ending the

Episode 108 - Mindfulness with Emily Perrin

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/27

#108: In this week’s episode, we have Part 2 of Emily Perrin’s conversation with Kat. After discussing her own student-athlete journey during Part 1 of her episode, this episode touches on her work with athletes and her company, Perrin Wellness and Performance. It’s clear that Emily’s passion is to spread mental health awareness and we are so appreciative that she works with Morgan’s Message! We discuss using mindfulness to check in and gain awareness, validation, compassion, breath work, and

Episode 107 - Emily Perrin

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/24

Show notes: This week we are joined by Emily Perrin, LMSW. Emily is the Director of Medical Advisory Council for Morgan’s Message and owns her own company, Perrin Wellness and Performance. She played collegiate soccer at University of Virginia before becoming a D1 coach and understands the importance of mental health awareness and recovery for athletes. During Part 1 of Emily’s episode, she opens up about her own student-athlete experience and how that has impacted her work now. Stay tuned for Part

Episode 106 - John Armistead

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/17

This week we are joined by John Armistead on The Mental Matchup. John is from northern California and went on to play college lacrosse at the University of Richmond before heading to grad school and using his 5th year of eligibility to play football at the University of Southern California. During the episode, John speaks with Kat about moving across the country to attend college and the social anxiety that accompanied the move. He opens up about dealing with multiple injuries, learning to balance

Episode 105 - Kristen Vacca

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/10

#105: This week, Kat sits down with Kristen Vacca, a student athlete and Morgan's Message Ambassador at McKendree University. Throughout the episode, Kristen opens up about her experience as an international student both through the recruiting process and also as a student living in a new country for college. Kristen talks about her own struggles with mental health and how she has helped spearhead initiatives to bring about changes at her school to give student athletes more safe spaces around

Stories Episode #2 - You are more than your sport

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/06

Episode 104 - Tara Kerr

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/10/03

Tara Kerr is our guest on The Mental Matchup this week. Tara grew up in NYC and is currently a senior on the women’s lacrosse team at William and Mary. Tara discusses how she struggled at the beginning of college with loss, injury, and dealing with the strict rules of COVID. She used journaling and affirmations as constructive ways to help deal with difficult times and has created her own mental health and wellness Instagram to help record her journey, @tsgoodvibes. Tara also touches on opening up

Episode 103 - Brandon Allen

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/09/26

#103: In this week’s episode of The Mental Matchup, Brandon Allen connects with Kat. Brandon was born and raised in the Bronx, NY, and then moved to Lancaster, PA, when he was ten years old. He went on to play college football at Towson University and is now a mental health advocate after going through a difficult period in college when he questioned his self-worth. Brandon talks about his struggles with mental health and how his passion helped him create his brand @loveyourself. TW: Suicide Follow

Episode 102 - Hannah Terry Part 2

The Mental Matchup ·

2023/09/19

#102 - During this episode, we are joined by Hannah Terry. Hannah is a Morgan’s Message Ambassador and a member of the Johns Hopkins women’s lacrosse team. Throughout the episode, Hannah speaks about her experiences with the recruiting process, working through people pleasing and learning how to combat intrusive thoughts. Kat and Hannah also touch on the importance of learning healthy coping mechanisms when you experience negative thoughts or experiences. In Part 2 of our conversation we focus on

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The Mental Matchup

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