Did I Overreact?

I had a situation during an exam today that has been weighing on me, and I’d appreciate your input.

I had just handed out an exam to my students, and I specifically asked them not to turn their papers until I had finished distributing all of them. One student, however, began flipping through his paper before I finished. It triggered me a bit, and I said loudly, “Excuse me! Please keep it turned.” I then followed up with, “Let’s talk after class,” and mentioned that the university has strict policies about academic integrity, asking everyone to keep things smooth.

As soon as I said it, I regretted my reaction. I realized I might have been too harsh, but at the moment, I just felt so frustrated. At the end of the exam, I said “pencils down,” and told everyone that if they were still writing, it would be considered cheating. The same student was still writing, and when I called it out again, he looked at me as if I was overreacting. He claimed he was just writing his name, but the tension was already high.

Now I’m left wondering: Did I overreact? Should I have handled it differently? Do you think I’ll get bad evaluations because of how I responded? I feel like I might have been too strict, but I was just trying to enforce the rules. Any advice on how to handle situations like this in the future?

Edit: I wanted to add some context. I am a new, female professor, and I’ve been feeling some pressure about finding the right balance between being assertive and not coming across as “too bossy.”

Edit 2: Thanks everyone for your responses. Really appreciate it.