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LSU Softball Star Jayden Heavener’s Strikeout Celebration Sets Off Social Media Firestorm

A strikeout celebration by the Tigers pitcher has stirred debate online, with fans weighing in on passion vs. sportsmanship.
Nicole Reitz|
Jayden Heavener's pitch has gone viral on social media.
Jayden Heavener's pitch has gone viral on social media. | LSU Athletics

LSU’s pitcher Jayden Heavener has found herself in the center of social media controversy. 

In the series finale against South Carolina, sophomore Heavener was seen shooing away Karley Shelton, the second batter she faced, after collecting a strikeout. 

Fans and former collegiate stars on X are calling it unprofessional. 

“There are only 3-4 pitchers in all of college softball that should be allowed to do this. But I won’t name names. Crazy,” former Oklahoma national champion Kinzie Hansen wrote on X. 

“Ma’am, you are 3-6 in conference play, you have zero business chirping like this…,” fan Annie Pride wrote on X. 

South Carolina’s assistant coach, Jody Davidson, was then seen shooing off LSU players from the dugout in response to Heavener’s behavior. 

It’s not the first time LSU has been seen waving off opponents after collecting an out. In the series against Texas A&M, the Aggies fired back with waves of their own. 

If a baseball player or other male athlete did the same thing, would social media have the same conversation? Some fans and former softball players have shed light on the situation. 

“I genuinely can’t stand when people try to police how competitive athletes compete. If an athlete did their big one, they can act like it! They aren’t responsible for your feelings about it. If you don’t like it, then be better,” LSU softball alum and MLB Network host A.J. Andrews wrote on X. 

“You just know the next batter to hit a HR off of her is gonna wave right back. I don’t hate competitiveness, I don’t hate fire. But I also don’t hate petty responses,” another fan commented on X. 

Current LSU players were quick to defend their ace as well. 

The Tigers went on to win 2-1 and take the series after dropping the first game against the Gamecocks. Heavener worked a 1-2-3 inning in the sixth, and the defense recorded the final three outs in the seventh, including a diving catch by Daniel at second base and a strikeout by Heavener to secure the win.

Heavener (7-6) finished the outing with five strikeouts and gave up one run on two hits to grab her ninth complete game of the season. On the season, she’s sitting with an ERA of 2.79 with 68 strikeouts across 77.2 innings. 

The Tigers haven’t been having the season they expected, but jumped up five spots this week in Softball America’s Top 25 Rankings to sit at No. 20. They now take on Louisiana Tech at home on Tuesday, before welcoming the Oklahoma Sooners for a three-game series beginning on March 27. 

The Sooners have homered in 33 of 34 games and recently broke the SEC softball home run record at 122. They’re sure to give the LSU pitching staff trouble, and the bullpen will need to be pristine in this conference matchup. 

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Nicole Reitz
NICOLE REITZ

Nicole Reitz graduated from Indiana University Indianapolis with a degree in sports journalism in 2022 and has been writing about softball and baseball since 2018 .Her work has been published in various publications like Softball America, the Indianapolis Star, and SoxOn35th.

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