Karlyn Pickens gives Tennessee softball 'every opportunity' in 14-inning loss to Alabama in super regional
Karlyn Pickens didn't enter the game until the fourth inning, and yet she ended Saturday's super regional contest having pitched more innings than a regular game.
The SEC Pitcher of the Year threw 129 pitches in 9⅓ innings, and seven of them were extra innings in the longest NCAA super regional game in history.
Pickens held No. 14 seed Alabama scoreless for nine innings, but Tennessee softball didn't have the offense to get the win. The No. 3 seed Lady Vols fell 3-2 to force a third game Sunday (4 p.m. ET, ESPN) to decide who moves on to the Women's College World Series.
"I mean, Karlyn gave us every opportunity," Tennessee coach Karen Weekly said. "She really didn't get herself even in too much trouble, but then when she did, she worked her way out of it for the most part."
Pickens struck out two in a row with two runners on in the eighth inning, and she ended the ninth with a strikeout. Then she went three up, three down in the 10th and 11th inning. Pickens also ended the 13th inning with a strikeout with two runners on. She ended with 10 strikeouts, five hits allowed, three walks, one earned run and three hit by pitch in 9⅓ innings.
"I just know, whenever we're in a game like this, Karlyn's going to keep us in it," said senior center fielder Kiki Milloy, who was the only UT player to log multiple hits. She went went 3-for-5 with two walks and a stolen base.
Tennessee's defense also made key plays in extra innings. Rylie West made a perfect throw from left field to third base to catch a runner stealing, and Taylor Pannell threw a laser from the center field wall to catch a runner going for a double.
Things fell apart in the 14th inning when Alabama strung together a single and a double with no outs. The third hitter was intentionally walked, and the Tide got a run across the plate the next at-bat to end it.
"I think games like that, you're going to have crazy moments like that," Pickens said of the final inning. "And I think postseason itself is – it's a wild time and things like that are going to happen. It's important that we come back tomorrow, reset our brains and just come back fresh."
Tennessee left the bases loaded twice, the second time in the 14th inning. UT left a runner stranded on third base four times and went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position. They went 3-for-25 with runners on base and left 18 runners on.
"It's always a little bit of a letdown, especially because of the belief we have in each other and our ability to make things happen there," Weekly said of the bases loaded situation in the final inning.
The majority of Tennessee's at-bats with runners in scoring position were with two outs on the board, and Milloy said they need to get runners on before that point. The Lady Vols went 1-for-14 in lead off at-bats.
"I think it's easy to make some things go and make some things happen with less than two," Milloy said. "But I mean, obviously, once you get to two outs – you kind of just have to make sure that you're getting your lead off batter on."
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Graduate pitcher Payton Gottshall started the game and went 3⅔ innings. She pitched two innings in relief Friday, and will have a fresh arm going into Sunday's series finale, but Weekly is confident Pickens can handle more innings if Tennessee needs her to.
"I'm excited just to win tomorrow, that's all I'm really caring about," Pickens said. "I think if my name is called tomorrow, I'll be just as strong as I was today and continue to win."
Cora Hall covers University of Tennessee women’s athletics. Email her at cora.hall@knoxnews.com and follow her on Twitter @corahalll. If you enjoy Cora’s coverage, consider a digital subscription that allows you to access all of it.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Tennessee softball wastes Karlyn Pickens' performance in 14-inning loss
