Kate Mannion, known as "Kate" from Barstool Sports (specifically The Yak and Zero Blog Thirty), was part of a Female Engagement Team (FET) while serving in the Marine Corps in Afghanistan.

During her deployments, she was referred to as a Lioness.

Key details about her role:
The Mission: She worked with Female Engagement Teams (FET), which were tasked with accessing local Afghan women—a role forbidden to male Marines due to cultural norms.
"Behind the Wire": She and other female Marines went "beyond the wire" (embedded with infantry units) in some of the most dangerous, active combat areas in Afghanistan.
Responsibilities: She talked to Afghan women, conducted searches, provided medical care, and gathered intelligence in places male grunts could not access.
Combat Experience: Her fellow Marines have noted her work involved serious, direct combat situations that "rival[ed]" their own, notes one teammate.

She is a USMC veteran who joined in 2008 and deployed to Afghanistan, often highlighting this experience to showcase the impact of female representation in combat-support roles.