Lady Vols defeat Dayton to open NCAA Tournament Knoxville Regional

Karlyn Pickens pitches a complete shutout for Tennessee against Dayton.

No. 3 overall seed Tennessee (41-10, 19-5 SEC) defeated Dayton (33-20, 19-7 A-10), 3-0, on Friday in the first-round of the NCAA Tournament Knoxville Regional at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

Destiny Rodriguez went 1-for-3 and recorded two RBIs, while Taylor Pannell went 1-for-3 and scored one run for the Lady Vols.

Sophia Nugent also went 1-for-2 and recorded one RBI for Tennessee.

Karlyn Pickens (20-6) started and pitched a complete game for the Lady Vols. She recorded 12 strikeouts, while totaling 76 pitches (59 strikes).

Tennessee will next play on Saturday against Virginia (33-18, 15-9 ACC) in a winners bracket game. First pitch is slated for noon EDT at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

The Cavaliers defeated Miami University, 7-0, on Friday.

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Lady Vols shut out Alabama to win SEC series

Tennessee records second consecutive shutout against Alabama to win series.

No. 3 Tennessee (37-8, 16-4 SEC) defeated Alabama (31-14, 8-12 SEC), 2-0, Saturday at Rhoads Field in Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

The Lady Vols won its fourth consecutive game and clinched a SEC series win.

Saturday also marked the second consecutive time Tennessee has shut out Alabama during the series.

Rylie West went 2-for-3 for Tennessee. She hit a solo home run, while recording one run and one RBI. Destiny Rodriguez went 3-for-3 and recorded one RBI.

Karlyn Pickens (17-5) pitched seven innings for Tennessee. She recorded seven strikeouts, while totaling 79 pitches (52 strikes).

First pitch for Sunday’s series finale is slated for 2 p.m. EDT and the game will be televised on ESPN2.

Georgia defeats Lady Vols to even SEC series

Georgia softball defeats the Lady Vols to even SEC series.

No. 3 Georgia (31-7, 7-4 SEC) defeated No. 6 Tennessee (29-6, 9-2 SEC), 3-2, Saturday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

With the victory, the Bulldogs tied the SEC series despite being outhit by the Lady Vols, 5-4. Georgia never trailed in the contest.

McKenna Gibson went 1-for-3 for Tennessee. She recoded one RBI, while Laura Mealer, batting in the leadoff spot in place of the injured Kiki Milloy, went 1-for-4 and recorded one run.

Alannah Leach went 1-for-3 and recorded one double. Rylie West went 1-for-3 and Destiny Rodriguez went 0-for-2. She recorded one RBI on a sacrifice fly.

Payton Gottshall (12-3) recorded a loss for the Lady Vols. She pitched six innings in relief and allowed one run and one hit, while recording seven strikeouts.

Charli Orsini started for the Lady Vols. She pitched one inning and allowed two runs, three hits and one walk. Orsini recorded one strikeout.

Lady Vols sweep South Carolina

Tennessee run-rules Gamecocks to sweep SEC series.

No. 7 Tennessee (26-4, 6-0 SEC) defeated No. 23 South Carolina (22-10, 0-6 SEC), 8-0 in six innings, at Carolina Softball Stadium in Columbia, South Carolina.

The Lady Vols remain as the only undefeated team in Southeastern Conference play. Tennessee also extended its win streak to 19 games.

Tennessee scored five runs in the sixth inning for a run-rule victory.

Zaida Puni went 1-for-3, recording one home run, three RBIs and one run, for Tennessee. Destiny Rodriguez went 2-for-3, recoding one double, one RBI and one run.

Laura Mealer went 3-for-3. She recoded one double, three RBIs and one run, while Sophia Nugent went 2-for-2. She recorded two RBIs and two doubles,

Taylor Pannell went 2-for-3 and recorded two runs.

Karlyn Pickens (14-2) pitched six innings. She allowed three hits and two walks, while recording 10 strikeouts.

Payton Gottshall records 1,000th career strikeout

Tennessee pitcher Payton Gottshall records 1,000th career strikeout.

No. 7 Tennessee (23-4, 3-0 SEC) defeated Western Carolina (7-12, 0-0 SoCon), 6-0, Thursday at Catamount Softball Complex in Cullowhee, North Carolina.

Thursday’s win is Tennessee’s 15th consecutive.

Kiki Milloy went 2-for-4. She recorded one home run, two RBIs and two runs, while Destiny Rodriguez went 2-for-4. She recoded one home run, one RBI and one run.

Rylie West went 2-for-4 and totaled one home run, one RBI and one run.

Charli Orsini started for Tennessee and pitched three innings. She did not allow a run, hit or walk.

Payton Gottshall (10-2) pitched four innings for the Lady Vols. She allowed three hits and recorded nine strikeouts, including the 1,000th of her college career.

Lady Vols run-rule Stetson, Brown to open Tennessee Classic

Tennessee softball run-rules Stetson and Brown to open Tennessee Classic.

No. 9 Tennessee (12-4) won two games in the Tennessee Classic on Sunday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

Tennessee defeated Stetson (7-13) and Longwood (6-10).

The Lady Vols outlasted the Hatters, 3-2, and run-ruled the Lancers, 12-1.

Against Stetson, Destiny Rodriguez went 1-for-3 and hit a winning RBI on a solo home run in the sixth inning.

Kiki Milloy went 1-for-1, recording two runs, three stolen bases and one walk, while Rylie West went 1-for-2 for one double and one RBI.

Zaida Puni hit an RBI on a groudout for Tennessee.

Karlyn Pickens (6-2) pitched 2.1 innings of scoreless relief. She allowed one hit and one walk, while recording five strikeouts.

In Tennessee’s second game, the Lady Vols defeated the Lancers in five innings.

Milloy hit two home runs and recoded three RBIs, while West hit a grand slam and McKenna Gibson hit a two-run home run in the third inning.

Payton Gottshall (5-2) pitched a complete game. She allowed one run, four hits, while recording six strikeouts.

Tennessee concludes tournament play on Monday against Longwood. First pitch is scheduled for noon EST.

Lady Vols run-rule Stetson, Brown in Tennessee Classic

Tennessee softball run-rules Stetson and Brown in Tennessee Classic.

No. 9 Tennessee (10-4) opened its home portion of the 2024 schedule with a pair of five-inning victories in the Tennessee Classic on Saturday at Sherri Parker Lee Stadium.

The Lady Vols run-ruled Stetson (6-10), 8-0.

Kiki Milloy went 1-for-2 and hit a solo home run, while Zaida Puni hit a three-run home run for Tennessee. Laura Mealer also hit a three-run triple.

Tennessee’s Karlyn Pickens pitched a five-inning complete game. She allowed one hit and recorded three strikeouts.

The Lady Vols also defeated Brown (3-4), 9-1.

McKenna Gibson went 2-for-3, recording one home run, one double, one run and three RBIs. Milloy went 2-for-2 with two runs, two RBIs, two stolen bases and one triple. Destiny Rodriguez also hit a two-run home run for Tennessee.

Payton Gottshall (4-2) pitched 2.1 innings of scoreless relief and recorded three strikeouts to earn a win.

Kiki Milloy sets Lady Vols’ all time home run record

Kiki Milloy sets the Lady Vols’ all time home run record.

No. 5 Tennessee (5-3) split a pair of games on opening day of the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic Friday in Cathedral City, California.

The Lady Vols opened the tournament with a, 4-0, victory over Loyola Marymount. Tennessee was run-ruled in its second game, losing to Cal State Fullerton, 11-2, in six innings.

Tennessee sophomore Karlyn Pickens (3-1) pitched a perfect game against Loyola Marymount. She pitched seven innings and recorded 12 strikeouts.

Kiki Milloy and McKenna Gibson each hit solo home runs for the Lady Vols. Destiny Rodriguez hit an RBI double and Taylor Pannell recoded an RBI on a sacrifice fly.

Against Cal State Fullerton (8-3), Tennessee led, 1-0, after Pannell hit a solo home run in the second inning.

Cal State Fullerton led, 8-1, before Gibson hit an RBI groundout, which scored Milloy, who recoded two stolen bases in the contest.

Lady Vols’ starting pitcher Payton Gottshall suffered the loss as she allowed six hits and six runs (three earned) in 3.2 innings. She recorded eight strikeouts in the game.

Milloy became Tennessee’s all time home run leader (58), passing Meghan Gregg for most in school history.

No. 2 Lady Vols sweep doubleheader at Baylor

No. 2 Lady Vols sweep doubleheader at No. 19 Baylor.

No. 2 Tennessee (3-0) completed a doubleheader sweep against No. 19 Baylor (0-2) Friday at Getterman Stadium in Waco, Texas.

The Lady Vols (3-0) defeated Baylor, 3-2, in game No. 1 and won game No. 2, 9-1.

In the first game, Baylor led, 1-0, in the third inning and extended its advantage to, 2-0, in the fifth inning.

Tennessee trailed, 2-1, in the sixth inning after McKenna Gibson hit an RBI single. The Lady Vols led, 3-2, in the seventh inning after Destiny Rodriguez hit a two-run home run.

Tennessee sophomore pitcher Karlyn Pickens (1-0) earned the win. She recorded four strikeouts.

In the second game, Tennessee run-ruled Baylor in six innings.

Rylie West went 2-for-2, recording one home run, one double, four RBIs and two walks. Kiki Milloy went 1-for-3, recording one home run and two runs for the Lady Vols.

Payton Gottshall (2-0) earned the win as she pitched 4.1 innings. She allowed four hits and recorded six strikeouts.

Charli Orsini started for the Lady Vols. She recorded one strikeout.