Brown's Olivia Pichardo makes history by appearing in Division I baseball game

PROVIDENCE — Brown freshman Olivia Pichardo became the first woman to appear in a Division I baseball game when she pinch-hit in a 10-1 loss to Bryant on Friday.

The left-handed batting utility player from Queens, New York, went to the plate with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning and grounded out to first on the first pitch.

Pichardo was an outfielder and pitcher on the USA Baseball Women's National Team that won three of five against Team Canada in its only games last summer. She walked on at Brown in the fall, and coach Grant Achilles told her she earned a roster spot in November.

Pichardo played club ball in the New York area and last year completed an internship in the New York Mets’ amateur scouting department. She played basketball and volleyball at the Garden School before attending Brown.

Back in November, when Pichardo was named to the team, Achilles told The Providence Journal that he was impressed with Pichardo's running speed, defensive play (both infield and outfield), arm strength, and her preparation. At the plate, she was hitting line drives to all fields.

"After 15 years of holding walk-on tryouts, you don't see that in a walk-on tryout," he said. "She is a baseball player."

After her Brown tryout, Pichardo was called into a team meeting with the coach on Oct. 4.

"I thought it was just a typical hitters and pitchers meeting," Pichardo said. "And all of a sudden, (Achilles) made the transition to announcing to everyone that I made the spring roster. That definitely took me by surprise, and everyone was super happy about it. It was a surreal moment for me because it's something I've wanted since eighth grade. It's kind of crazy to know that I'm living out my dream right now and the ideal college experience that I've always wanted, so that's really cool."

About a half-dozen women are known to have played baseball at junior colleges or lower-division four-year schools. Brown is 1-10 this season and is in the midst of a four-game series with Bryant.

This article originally appeared on The Providence Journal: Olivia Pichardo of Brown University makes history by playing in baseball game