An ace won’t always have their best stuff, but what separates them from the pack is their ability to find it, as Karlyn Pickens did on Sunday.
No. 1 Tennessee softball came up with a 6-2 win over Appalachian State at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium. The Lady Vols (19-0) rallied for the third time in the weekend to cap off a perfect series at the Tennessee Invitational, while the Mountaineers (13-5) will head back home after a 2-3 weekend.
Tennessee changed up its starter and went with Karlyn Pickens after Erin Nuwer took the ball against the Mountaineers on Friday, while Appalachian State went back with freshman Camryn Fisher. Pickens struck out 15 batters in a complete game, walking four and allowing two hits and two runs.
As they did on Friday, the Mountaineers started fast in the first inning. As it was on Friday, it was Makayla McClain stimulating the offense. Following a hit batter to lead off the game, McClain hammered a 1-1 offering from Pickens halfway up the scoreboard to quickly put the visitors up 2-0.
The Lady Vols were on the cusp of a response in the bottom half of the inning, with Sophia Knight and Gabby Leach reaching to lead off the inning. With one out, Elsa Morrison was hit by a pitch to load the bases. However, Fisher struck out Taelyn Holley and induced a groundball to second to preserve the lead.
In the ensuing half inning, Appalachian State pressured Pickens and threatened to stretch the lead further, putting their first two batters on. After a pair of strikeouts, McClain was offered the ultimate sign of respect — Pickens intentionally walked her to load the bases. The decision proved wise, as the Tennessee ace induced a flyout to left to escape the jam.
When the lineup turned over in the third, the Lady Vols took advantage. Knight and Leach again reached to lead off, and both were brought home on sac flies from Ella Dodge and Morrison. With two out, Holley laced a triple off the wall, and Alannah Leach served a liner into left field to give Tennessee their first lead of the afternoon.
After working through early traffic, Pickens settled in and shut things down. She set down nine Mountaineers in a row through the middle innings, and at one point, she struck out six consecutive batters.
Over the first two innings, Pickens gave up two runs and allowed six baserunners. After the second inning, the two-time SEC Pitcher of the Year allowed just a pair of hitters to reach, and Appalachian State did not have a runner reach second the rest of the way.
In the sixth, Tennessee landed the knockout punch courtesy of a veteran.
After a double from Makenzie Butt and a walk to Knight, Dodge launched her team-leading sixth home run of the season to stretch the lead to 6-2.
Fittingly, to end it, McClain and Pickens went toe-to-toe with two outs in the seventh. On the eleventh pitch of their duel, the Mountaineers’ massive swing came up empty as the Tennessee ace blew her away to finish the game. The punchout was the 15th of the day for Pickens, which both set a new season-high and tied her career-best.
Tennessee will be back in action on Tuesday against Belmont, its last game before its first SEC series of the season versus LSU.
