KNOXVILLE, Tenn. – As it did on Friday in the first matchup between the two programs, the App State softball team struck first with a long two-run home run by
Makayla McClain off the back-to-back SEC Pitcher of the Year Karlyn Pickens to take a first-inning lead. But No. 1 Tennessee plated three runs in the third inning to take the lead, which was all it needed to run away with a 6-2 victory to close the Tennessee Invitational on Sunday.
McClain's two-run home run marked the first time this season that Tennessee (19-0) has allowed more than one run in a game this season. App State (13-5) led the top-ranked Volunteers for a combined total of seven innings in the two matchups. Additionally, the Mountaineers are responsible for two of the three times that Tennessee has trailed this season.
Despite taking the loss, freshman pitcher
Camryn Fisher provided a spark in the circle for the Mountaineers, as she went the distance and struck out five batters. Fisher went toe-to-toe with Pickens on Sunday, throwing 127 pitches for the day, which kept App State within striking distance even after Tennessee claimed a lead.
Along with McClain's surge,
Grace Barrett posted a strong weekend in Knoxville, tallying seven hits in 15 at-bats. This included a home run on Saturday, her first of the season, and two doubles. Additionally,
Julia Girk, who jumped into the top spot of the Mountaineers' order, recorded four hits and scored five runs at the Tennessee Invitational.
How it Happened
App State tallied the game's first baserunner courtesy of a hit-by-pitch by Girk, which put a runner on for McClain. Looking to strike early in the count, McClain unloaded on a 1-1 pitch over the middle of the plate for a two-run home run to put App State on top. It was her ninth home run of the season, and her second of the weekend against the Volunteers.
Pitching with a lead, Fisher worked around a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the inning to post a scoreless frame. The Mountaineers generated another chance in the top of the second after
Madison Fletcher walked and
Marti Henkel reached base on an error, but Pickens was able to get out of the inning unscathed by inducing a flyout.
Both sides tallied a perfect inning in their next defensive trip to the field, but Tennessee took a one-run lead thanks to four hits in the bottom of the third. App State couldn't answer in the fourth inning, but Fisher responded to Tennessee's crooked number with a zero in the bottom of the fourth to send action to the fifth with Tennessee on top by one.
Fisher again worked around a few baserunners in the fifth inning to keep the Mountaineers within one run into the sixth frame. Tennessee didn't let App State score in the top of the sixth frame, and it scored three runs on a three-run home run to extend its lead to four as play entered the final inning. Down to their last at-bat, the Mountaineers saw a walk by Henkel put a baserunner aboard to lead off the inning, but Pickens sat down the next three hitters to secure the win.
Sunday Notes
Home runs
App: McClain (9)
TENN: Dodge (6)
WP: Karlyn Pickens (6-0): 7 IP, 2 hits, 2 runs, 4 walks, 15 strikeouts
SV: N/A
LP:
Camryn Fisher (7-3): 6 IP, 9 hits, 6 runs, 3 walks, 5 strikeouts
Up Next
The Mountaineers will open their 2026 home schedule at Sywassink/Lloyd Family Stadium with the Mountaineer Classic next Friday-Sunday. App State will face off against Furman twice and Queens twice over the weekend. Every game of the Mountaineer Classic will be broadcast on ESPN+.
