Karlyn Pickens

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Karlyn Nicole Pickens is a 6-foot-1 professional softball pitcher from Weaverville, North Carolina, born January 9, 2004. She pitches for the Carolina Blaze of the Athletes Unlimited Softball League and was acquired with the first overall pick in the 2026 AUSL draft. Pickens played college softball at the University of Tennessee, where in her fourth season as a Lady Vol she made 17 starts across 34 appearances, pitching 148 innings with 194 strikeouts and a 1.70 ERA. She recorded 11 strikeouts in a win over Alabama. Pickens has signed name, image, and likeness deals with Weigel's and with a professional league, making her the first college softball player to sign an NIL deal with a pro league. Her Instagram account, @karlynpickens, has 171K followers.