There's no barrier Olivia Pichardo can't knock down.
In March, she became the first woman to play in an NCAA Division I baseball game for Brown University. She then said he hoped to inspire a "new wave" of girls to make it further and further in baseball. If her most recent viral moment is any indication, she's well on her way.
Pichardo, playing for the Sag Harbor Whalers of the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League, crushed a home run on Saturday against the Westhampton Aviators. It marked the first home run by a woman in the history of the HCBL, a league that has featured MLB players such as 2021 National League Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes, Nick Ahmed, Josiah Gray and Zack Godley.
It was the reaction of her teammates that made this video even better:
Olivia Pichardo of the @saghbrwhalers made HCBL history yesterday becoming the first female in the HCBL to hit a home run in Game 2 of a doubleheader in Westhampton. pic.twitter.com/TzR6kBwvxp
— Hamptons League (@HamptonsLeague) July 23, 2023
DAMN. That's a swing.
And the fact that her teammates couldn't wait to high-five her at the end was so wholesome. You can even hear one of them scream "oh my god!" after the crack of the bat. And the bat is wood, too!
Pichardo hit her home run off Aviators pitcher Jack Edwards, who pitches for Tufts University. She finished the game 1-for-2 with two RBIs, two runs and two walks. The Whalers won the game, 8-6.
Pichardo might be just hitting .089 (4-for-45) on the season, but she has nearly as many walks (16) as strikeouts (18) at the plate. Plus, she has a 0.00 ERA in three innings on the mound, where she's struck out six batters.
Pichardo, who will be a sophomore at Brown, still has plenty of time to develop in the college ranks. And with a swing like that, plus her presence on the mound, who knows what else she'll accomplish.
