Two of the best pitchers in the nation will duel this weekend when Texas softball takes on No. 5 Tennessee in Austin.
“There’s not a weakness in their game,” Tennessee head coach Karen Weekly said of Texas. “They’ve got great pitching, a really dynamic and productive offense, and they play good defense.”
The Vols are 7–5 in Southeastern Conference play, winning three SEC series thus far. Most notably, Tennessee took its series over one of the top-ranked teams in the nation, Oklahoma, a significant bounce-back after losing a series against No. 7 Arkansas.
There is little doubt that Tennessee’s ace junior Karlyn Pickens and Texas sophomore Teagan Kavan are the top prospects for SEC Pitcher of the Year. Pickens has one of the best arms in the country and recently wrote her name in the history books.
In a win against Arkansas, she clocked a pitch of 78.2 mph, the fastest pitch recorded in college softball history. Pickens’s velocity is lethal, consistently throwing 70 seconds with her fastball. With an ERA of 0.94, Pickens has thrown 153 strikeouts and allowed just 26 runs across the season, holding opposing hitters to a batting average of 0.153.
Besides speed, Pickens has an innate ability to dominate all four quadrants, throwing great change ups, then switching to rise balls, throwing off both the timing and eye level of the batter.
For Texas, Kavan has commanded the circle. After throwing her first career no-hitter against Missouri, she was awarded SEC and D1Softball’s Pitcher of the Week. Like Pickens, Kavan has become well-rounded in both speed and ability to mix up the types of balls. With a record of 17–2 this season, she has struck out 156 batters.
However, it’s not just Kavan who can carry the load. Texas has a solid pitching staff in senior Mac Morgan and junior Citlaly Gutierrez. Texas is currently the only Division I softball program in the country with three pitchers with 30 or more wins.
On the offensive side, Texas’ offense has the advantage against the Vols. Teamwide, the Longhorns have the second-best batting average in the nation, while Tennessee stands at 30th. Junior catcher Reese Atwood, senior utility Mia Scott and sophomore infielder Katie Stewart are key at bat. Despite the talent and stats coming in, the lineup could struggle to adjust against Pickens’ volatility.
The series against Tennessee marks the beginning of Texas’s most challenging three-week stretch of its regular season, with series against No. 6 LSU and No. 2 Oklahoma in the following weeks.
Although Texas is the clear favorite in this matchup, the Vols are capable of being the best in the nation on their home turf and are comfortable being the lower-ranked team.
“I haven’t found a weakness yet, so it’s going to be real challenging,” Weekly said. “But we kind of like being the underdog role.”
The first pitch against the Vols is at 8 p.m. on Friday at home.
