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Just like in college softball, the Athletes Unlimited Softball League has its batters use aluminum bats as they swing for the fences against the best arms in the nation.
As it turns out, at least two of those bats have been no match for high-speed pitches from Carolina Blaze rookie Karlyn Pickens.
In Pickens’ last two starts on July 11 and July 15, two of those aluminum bats have shattered when they’ve met pitches coming from her high-powered right arm. Both broke in half around the handle. Leighann Goode’s bat broke immediately when her bunt attempt met a 75 miles-per-hour offering from Pickens.
A product of the University of Tennessee, Pickens has lived up to the hype as the No. 1 overall pick in the AUSL Draft. She has a 4-5 record with a 3.02 ERA, but is tied with Montana Fouts of the Utah Talons for the league-lead in strikeouts with 53. Pickens also ranks sixth in opponents’ batting average against this year with a mark of .224. She has one shutout and one save across 55.2 innings of work.
Fouts and Pickens are both chasing the single-season strikeout record for the fledgling league. The previous mark was 51, set last year by Rachel Garcia.
Pickens left Tennessee as one of the most decorated players in Lady Vols’ history. She was twice named SEC Pitcher of the Year, was a three-time First Team All-American, helped Tennessee take three trips to the Women’s College World Series and tossed four no-hitters in her collegiate career.
"One of the things we always preached at Tennessee was just to never settle, never be complacent with where you are, always try to find something you can improve," Pickens said earlier this season. "I think that's a trait that I'm going to continue in the pros. You know, realizing that I'm not perfect and there's people around me that have been playing a long time and have a lot of knowledge. I'm excited to get to learn from them, maybe put a few new tricks up my sleeve."
Throwing extremely fast and hard pitches is what the native of Weaverville, North Carolina has become known for. Pickens broke her own record in the Super Regional round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament when she tossed a pitch that hit 79.4 miles per hour on the radar gun, making it the fastest pitch ever thrown in the history of Division I college softball. The speed and velocity of that throw were equivalent to a 111.7 miles per hour pitch in Major League Baseball.
For fans, likely the final chance to see Pickens pitch in the regular season will be on Monday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN 2 when the Blaze host the OKC Spark in Durham, North Carolina. The Blaze are in fifth place and only the top three teams will make the AUSL’s postseason.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Metal softball bats are no match for Karlyn Pickens’ high-powered pitches in AUSL
Continue reading...
As it turns out, at least two of those bats have been no match for high-speed pitches from Carolina Blaze rookie Karlyn Pickens.
In Pickens’ last two starts on July 11 and July 15, two of those aluminum bats have shattered when they’ve met pitches coming from her high-powered right arm. Both broke in half around the handle. Leighann Goode’s bat broke immediately when her bunt attempt met a 75 miles-per-hour offering from Pickens.
A product of the University of Tennessee, Pickens has lived up to the hype as the No. 1 overall pick in the AUSL Draft. She has a 4-5 record with a 3.02 ERA, but is tied with Montana Fouts of the Utah Talons for the league-lead in strikeouts with 53. Pickens also ranks sixth in opponents’ batting average against this year with a mark of .224. She has one shutout and one save across 55.2 innings of work.
Fouts and Pickens are both chasing the single-season strikeout record for the fledgling league. The previous mark was 51, set last year by Rachel Garcia.
Pickens left Tennessee as one of the most decorated players in Lady Vols’ history. She was twice named SEC Pitcher of the Year, was a three-time First Team All-American, helped Tennessee take three trips to the Women’s College World Series and tossed four no-hitters in her collegiate career.
"One of the things we always preached at Tennessee was just to never settle, never be complacent with where you are, always try to find something you can improve," Pickens said earlier this season. "I think that's a trait that I'm going to continue in the pros. You know, realizing that I'm not perfect and there's people around me that have been playing a long time and have a lot of knowledge. I'm excited to get to learn from them, maybe put a few new tricks up my sleeve."
Throwing extremely fast and hard pitches is what the native of Weaverville, North Carolina has become known for. Pickens broke her own record in the Super Regional round of the 2025 NCAA Tournament when she tossed a pitch that hit 79.4 miles per hour on the radar gun, making it the fastest pitch ever thrown in the history of Division I college softball. The speed and velocity of that throw were equivalent to a 111.7 miles per hour pitch in Major League Baseball.
For fans, likely the final chance to see Pickens pitch in the regular season will be on Monday at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN 2 when the Blaze host the OKC Spark in Durham, North Carolina. The Blaze are in fifth place and only the top three teams will make the AUSL’s postseason.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Metal softball bats are no match for Karlyn Pickens’ high-powered pitches in AUSL
Continue reading...
