SEC softball player tosses fastest pitch ever in NCAA Super Regional

This college softball season has been full of players posting eye-popping stats.

Arkansas first baseman Bri Ellis is putting up hitting numbers that can only be correlated to MVP seasons from Barry Bonds, while do-it-all Nebraska star Jordy Bahl is drawing comparisons to Shoehei Ohtani. Boise State’s Sophia Knight became the first player in 23 years to have more than 100 hits in a single season, and Belmont’s Maya Johnson piled up 366 strikeouts.

And then there’s Tennessee pitcher Karlyn Pickens, who is throwing harder than anyone in the sport ever has before.

That’s not hyperbole. Pickens broke her own NCAA record on Saturday in a Super Regional matchup with Nebraska when she tossed a pitch that hit 79.4 miles-per-hour on the gun. That makes it the fastest pitch ever thrown in the history of Division I college softball.

Here’s a look at the record-breaking toss, which was fouled off by Bahl:

The play of Pickens is a major reason why the Lady Vols are in the Super Regionals, and she played a crucial role in their Game Two win on Saturday, which forced a winner-take-all Game Three on Sunday. Pickens allowed just two runs on five hits while striking out 11 batters in seven innings of work in the 3-2 victory over the Huskers.

On the season, the junior from Weaverville, North Carolina, has a 1.03 ERA, which ranks second nationally. She’s also eighth in the country in hits allowed per seven innings (4.21), 16th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.67), and sixth in total strikeouts with 270. She was named SEC Pitcher of the Year and sports a 23-9 win-loss record.

The previous record for the fastest pitch, also owned by Pickens, was registered earlier this season when she tossed one that hit 78.2 MPH on the gun against Arkansas.

She could have the opportunity to break the record again this season should the Volunteers advance to the Women’s College World Series in Oklahoma City.