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Tennessee Lady Vols pitcher Karlyn Pickens 'day-to-day' with arm injury

On3 imageby: Brent Hubbs03/04/26Brent_Hubbs

Tennessee Lady Vol softball is listing senior star pitcher Karlyn Pickens as “day-to-day” after he left Tuesday’s game against Belmont in obvious discomfort. 

“Karlyn Pickens suffered an arm strain during the Belmont game,” Tennessee announced. “She was evaluated Tuesday night and Wednesday morning. She is currently listed as day-to-day.”

Tennessee opens SEC play at home on Friday against LSU

Pickens struck out two in 1.1 innings with one walk before leaving after getting the first out in the second inning.

Pickens had been rolling her shoulder a bit the two pitches prior but clearly felt something wrong on this one.

pic.twitter.com/GEHsYNFM0H

— Brady (@BradyVernon)

March 3, 2026

Pickens was replaced by Sage Mardjetko who threw one inning before being lifted for Erin Nuwer. Nuwer gave up one hit and struck out seven in 4.2 innings of work as the Lady Vols remained perfect on the season running their record to 20-0.

Pickens came into the game a 6-0 record and a 0.62 ERA in eight games this season. The senior had 66 strikeouts in 45.1 innings. Pickens threw on Sunday recording the win over Appalachian State as she struck out 15 batters after giving up a first inning home run.

Pickens is one of Tennessee’s most high profile athletes garnering NIL deals locally and nationally. She’s also one of the Lady Vols most decorated athletes. Pickens in 3 plus seasons has 62 wins and has a career ERA of 1.41. She is the reigning two time SEC pitcher of the year and in 2023 she was named the SEC’s freshman of the year.

The Lady Vols have been the talk of Tennessee’s campus over the last month. The top ranked team in the country entered today 19-0 with six wins against ranked teams and have outscored opponents 143-10 to start the season.

Led by Pickens, the Lady Vols have been dominant in the circle. Tennessee pitchers have allowed 10 runs in 19 games. The pitching staff has combined for a 0.53 ERA. They have 164 strikeouts and a .107 opponent batting average. Sophomore Erin Nuwer is 9-0, allowing only one run and eight hits in 37.2 innings. Mardjekto is 4-0 with 54 strikeouts in 31.1 innings making the Lady Vols one of the deepest pitching staff’s in the country.