Virtuous Athlete

Drew Romo lost his Senior year to COVID in 2020, but was still drafted 35th overall by the Colorado Rockies out of The Woodlands High School in Texas. Prior to being drafted by the Rockies, Drew won gold and silver medals with the 18U Team USA and also played in multiple All-American Games across the country. During our conversation, Drew shared about the adversity he faced while in the Minor leag...

Monica Balistrere grew up in Virginia with a family full of basketball players. She attended Bishop O'Connell High School, then played collegiately at Binghamton University before transferring to Florida Southern College. During our conversation, Monica shared about dealing with the adversity of injuries, how her faith helped her in those times, and how she grew closer to Christ through that a...

Akol Arop is a former college basketball player at the University of Nebraska, Nebraska at Omaha, and Florida Southern College. Akol's family is originally from South Sudan, but he was born in Cairo, Egypt. At a young age, his family then moved to Houston, TX, before settling in Omaha, Nebraska. Akol was a 3-time All-State basketball player at Creighton Prep, where they also won a State Champi...

In this 2025 Wrap-up Episode, Host Mike Hoendorf reviews the 2025 episodes and shares his top takeaways and overall themes from the year. Mike also shares his personal reflections from these amazing conversations and his overall work with Catholic Athletes for Christ. Lastly, Mike shares some simple hopes and goals for 2026, along with his word of the year and Patron Saint for 2026.

Clay Tucker is a former college golfer at Florida Southern College in Lakeland, FL. Clay grew up in the Jacksonville area, where he attended Catholic elementary and high school. Clay started golfing at a young age when we would head to the golf course with his Granpa and siblings. Clay was an accomplished golfer at Bishop Kenny High School, where he also had his first interaction with Catholic Ath...

Fr. Chris Comerford is a priest from the Diocese of Springfield, IL, and has been a Chaplain for the St. Louis Cardinals since 2009. Fr. Chris always dreamed of being the voice of the St. Louis Cardinals and taking over for the legendary Jack Buck. However, the Lord had other plans for him, and not long after being ordained a priest, he was invited to celebrate Mass for the St. Louis Cardinals at...

Erin (Treadway) Hazelbaker was an Ohio Volleyball Player of the Year at Chaminade Julienne High School and an All-American at the University of Dayton. After her volleyball career ended, she became a Physical Therapist and is now the CEO of Victress Health and Wellness, which is a Catholic Health Services organization she owns with her sister in Ohio. During our conversation, Erin shares how God h...

Max Watson is a Seminarian in the Diocese of Toledo, OH. Max was an All-State golfer in Ohio before going on to play college golf at Eastern Michigan and Florida Southern. In 2021, Max won the 115th Ohio Amateur Championship in a playoff hole. However, after winning that Championship, he realized that success in golf was not fulfilling and led him to delve deeper into his Catholic Faith. Max share...

Fr. Joe Krupp is a priest out of the Lansing, MI Diocese and is presently the Pastor at Church of the Holy Family and Holy Family School in Grand Blanc, Michigan and St. Mark Parish in Goodrich, Michigan. Fr. Joe previously served as the Campus Minister for Michigan State University and was the team chaplain for both the football and basketball teams, becoming good friends with both Mark Dantonio...

Don DiGiacomo is the Head Baseball Coach at St. Xavier High School in Cincinnati, OH. Don has been teaching and coaching at St. X for 40 years, and before serving as the Head Baseball Coach, he also helped coach State Championship teams in Cross Country, Swimming, and Football. During our conversation, Don shares his own faith journey toward full membership in the church and the impact his time at...

Bennett Lee is a catcher in the Detroit Tigers organization, after being drafted out of Wake Forest in the 6th round of the 2023 draft. Bennett went to nationally known Tampa Jesuit High School, where they won the 2019 State Championship and they were ranked #1 in the country before Covid ended their season in 2020. While attending Tampa Jesuit, Bennett decided to join the Catholic Church, and has...

Jeff Suppan spent 17 seasons in Major League Baseball, playing for seven different organizations and three of those twice. In 2006, he was the NLCS MVP for the St. Louis Cardinals, on their way to a World Series Championship. Jeff became involved with Catholic Athletes for Christ in its early beginnings, went to Rome in 2005 to speak at a special Sports gathering at the Vatican, and was pivotal in...

Amanda Tatantelli is the Head Volleyball Coach and Campus Minister at Bishop Stang High School in North Dartmouth, MA. Amanda, also known as Mama T, has been at Bishop Stang for 20 years and been the volleyball coach for 10 years. She shares why she loves working with high school students, why she looks at them as her kids, and shares the special bond she has the opportunity to form as she meets h...

Ivan Brethowr is a member of the Pittsburgh Pirates organization, after being drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 7th round of 2024 and traded this summer. Ivan played collegiately at Arizona State and then UC Santa Barbara. He dealt with multiple health and injury issues at UCSB, but was still able to make All-Big West both seasons. Ivan shares the role his faith has played in helping him live out...

Rachel is a former competitive dancer and figure skater, and is now the Founder and Director of the Success and Performance Coaching Program at catholiccounselors.com Rachel explains how her performance experiences and her family's involvement in counseling have enabled her to enter the sports performance arena with an added faith perspective. In our conversation, Rachel shares examples (anony...

Maura is an accomplished long-distance runner who continues to compete competitively into her 30s. Maura was a 4-time All-Ohio Cross Country runner, a two-time All-Atlantic 10 runner, and was the 2011 Indoor Atlantic 10 Runner of the Year at the University of Dayton After spending time as a high school cross-country coach, she has returned to competing at the national level and has won numerous ra...

Trevor Williams is a 10 year MLB Veteran, making his MLB debut with the Pittsburgh Pirates, spending time with the Cubs and Mets, and now is a member of the Washington Nationals. Along with being a successful baseball palyer, Trevor is more proud to be a Christ-centered husband and father to their five children. Their family focuses on having their eyes fixed on Christ. Trevor is also a member of...

Ray is the founder of Catholic Athletes for Christ (CAC) and has been working in this ministry for over 20 years! CAC is an apostolate that was born directly from St. John Paul II's creation of the Vatican Sports Office in the early 2000s. The ministry started with supporting Professional baseball players getting to Mass regularly, but has grown to serve all levels of baseball, the creation of...

Grant is a Mental Performance Coach and is the Offensive Coordinator and a teacher at E.D. White High School in Thibodaux, LA. Grant shares how his own mental performance struggles led him to the work he is doing now, and how an experience at the end of 2023 led to him making significant personal changes that are now a foundation for helping others. Grant is a special dude who is willing to be vul...

J.J. Niekro is the son of Houston Astro Hall of Famer and the present club leader for wins, Joe Niekro, and the nephew of MLB Hall of Famer and legendary knuckleballer pitcher Phil Niekro. J.J. recently retired from the Atlanta Braves organization, after signing with them as a Free Agent following his time at Florida Southern College, and playing at nationally known Tampa Jesuit High School. J.J....

Joe is a former professional baseball player who the Texas Rangers drafted out of high school in 2008. He went on to make his MLB debut with the San Diego Padres in 2014 and also pitched for the Dodgers and Mariners before heading off to pitch in Japan in 2017. Joe went on to play for 13 different teams in five countries during his career, also competing in Korea, Mexico, and Taiwan. Joe recently...

Matt is a veteran MLB Scout and Player Personnel leader of over 30 years. He began his career with the Milwaukee Brewers as a 19-year-old college student, then spent time with the Baltimore Orioles, Los Angeles Dodgers, and, most recently, the St. Louis Cardinals. Matt has been active with the Catholic Athletes for Christ ministry for many years and coordinated all Masses for the St. Louis Cardina...

Brady is a former member of the University of Dayton basketball program and a third-generation Flyer following his dad and grandfather. Brady was the player of the year in his senior year of high school at Archbishop Alter, but unfortunately, his season was cut short due to COVID, with only a few wins away from a State Championship game. Brady walked on to Dayton and eventually gained a scholarshi...

Alex is the head coach of the Wright State University Men's Soccer Program after previous head coaching roles at Wilmington College, Defiance College, and Chaminade Julienne High School. Prior to his coaching career, Alex was a standout soccer player for Carroll High School and Wilmington College, and is now in both of their Athletic Hall of Fames. While Alex loves being a soccer coach, it is...

Roman is a member of the UCLA Bruins baseball team that went to the 2025 College World Series. Along that journey he was named the Most Outstanding Player in the Los Angeles Regional and was voted Second Team All-Big 10. Prior to his time at UCLA, he was part of the USA 18U Team that won a Gold medal and was rated the number one player in his class in the State of California. Roman embraces and ce...