The Lady Vols went 6-0 at the Tennessee Invitational and never allowed an opponent to score. The pitching staff put up two no-hitters and the offense scored 48 runs against UT Martin, Delaware State and Indiana State.

Sophomore pitcher Sage Mardjetko, a transfer from South Carolina, secured the closing win Sunday against Delaware State. Junior pitcher Karlyn Pickens threw a no-hitter Saturday against UT Martin with 11 strikeouts and one walk for her third career no-hitter.

“Being able to share this with my team, it’s a great moment,” Pickens said.

Also on Saturday, freshman Peyton Tanner pitched a no-hitter and perfect game against Delaware State with six strikeouts, no walks and no errors. It marked the third time in program history – and the first since 2006 – that Lady Vol pitchers tossed no-hitters on the same day.

“I definitely wasn’t expecting that,” Tanner said. “I had told Karlyn no way we go back-to-back. It’s given me some confidence, some energy, and I just love it that I was able to do it with Karlyn.”

Tanner opened the game with a 3-0 count against the first batter she faced but didn’t flinch in her second career start in college.

“The way she bounced back from that and got that batter out, she seemed to get on a roll and got better as the game went along,” Tennessee coach Karen Weekly said. “That’s a big deal, especially for a freshman. She and Karlyn stayed really locked in all day. That was cool.”

Tanner, who is from Lake Jackson, Texas, earned SEC Freshman of the Week honors on Monday for her effort.

No. 7 Tennessee (19-3) will start SEC play next with a three-game series at Georgia on March 7-9.

BASKETBALL: After winning four games in a row, the Lady Vols lost the final two, including the regular season finale on Senior Day on Sunday, and fell to the No. 9 seed in the SEC tourney.

“It’s hard to make an opening statement after that performance, because you still want to love on your seniors,” Tennessee coach Kim Caldwell said. “You still want to give them the recognition that they deserve. I love them. I appreciate them. I’m thankful for them changing my life and being around them every single day.”

Tennessee, 21-8, will square off with No. 16 seed Texas A&M, 10-18, at 11 a.m. on Wednesday, March 5, in the first game of the SEC Women’s Basketball Tournament at Bon Secours Arena in Greenville, South Carolina, with the TV broadcast on the SEC Network. The winner will play No. 8 seed Vanderbilt on Thursday, March 6, at 11 a.m., also on the SEC Network.

The loss to Kentucky on the road – the Wildcats are the No. 4 seed in the tourney – was disappointing because the Lady Vols never mounted a challenge. The 72-69 loss to Georgia, 12-18, at home was brutal. It forced the Lady Vols into play a day sooner in Greenville and likely torpedoed any shot to host the early rounds of the NCAA tourney.

Tennessee also lost leading scorer Talaysia Cooper to a right ankle injury in the second quarter, and she never returned to the sideline after having to be carried off the court. Cooper’s availability for Greenville, especially with the short turnaround, is a question mark.

“It’s very disappointing that we came out the way we did,” Caldwell said. “Incredibly disappointing that was our response.”

TAMIKA CATCHINGS: Tennessee legend Tamika Catchings learned during the live broadcast of the Lady Vols basketball game Sunday that she would be inducted into the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2025.

“Tamika Catchings is one of the most accomplished and respected players in the history of women’s basketball,” said Brad Willis, executive director of the Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame. “From her time at Tennessee under Pat Summitt to her Hall of Fame career in the WNBA and her leadership off the court, Tamika has left an incredible legacy.”

Willis made the trip to Knoxville and surprised Catchings while she was serving as an analyst on the SEC Network.

“Wow, you guys are trying to get me to start crying,” Catchings said.

Catchings will join teammate Chamique Holdsclaw in the 2025 class, and induction will be held July 19, 2025, at the Omni Nashville Downtown. The news about Holdsclaw was released Feb. 19.

“I texted Chamique when I heard her news and just completely honored to be alongside her at any point in time,” Catchings said. “Mique is one of the reasons I came to the University of Tennessee to be able to play with some of the greatest players ever in the world and continue to be a part of the family.”

Maria M. Cornelius, a senior writer/editor at MoxCar Marketing + Communications since 2013, started her journalism career at the Knoxville News Sentinel and began writing about the Lady Vols in 1998. In 2016, she published her first book, “The Final Season: The Perseverance of Pat Summitt,” through The University of Tennessee Press.