Lady Vols softball twists the knife in the perfect way after winning crucial series over Alabama
Tennessee turned to an old tradition to stick it to their interstate rival on Monday.
The Tennessee Lady Vols got some long awaited revenge over the Alabama Crimson Tide on the softball diamond over the weekend. And that revenge was enjoyed both during and after the conclusion of the series, which Tennessee claimed two games to one.
In a battle of top 10 teams, Tennessee fell behind the eight ball quickly on Saturday in the series opener. The Crimson Tide slugged their way to a decisive 12-0 win over the Lady Vols, with Tennessee managing just a meager two hits in the run-ruled five-inning series opener.
One might have thought that was a tone setter. But as it turns out, Alabama had just one more run in their system for the remaining 14 innings.
Tennessee bounced back on Sunday with a 2-0 shutout to even the series. Sage Mardjetko threw a complete game one-hitter to get the Vols in the win column.
And on Monday, Karlyn Pickens came out of the bullpen to pitch the final five innings and slam the door on a 4-1 series-clinching win over the No. 2 team in the country, recording 11 strikeouts in the process.
And after the game, the players got into the spirit of the Alabama-Tennessee rivalry by smoking cigars. While it’s a football-initiated tradition, it’s one that had a revenge factor to it this year.
Lady Vols players smoked cigars after series win over Alabama
After Alabama eliminated the Lady Vols in the 2024 Super Regional, they smoked cigars on Tennessee’s home field to celebrate.
It’s clear that celebration from two years ago wasn’t forgotten, as Tennessee head coach Karen Weekly pointed out when speaking with the media after the game on Monday.
“We sure did,” Weekly said. “They smoked cigars on that field. They celebrated on our logo. Yeah, and when you do that, when somebody does that on your home field, you’re not going to forget it.”
We’ll find out if these two teams end up crossing paths again in the postseason, but for now, to the victor goes the spoils cigars.