Hall, McCullough named Applebee's Student-Athletes of the Month

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum University pitcher Charles Hall and tennis player Annie McCullough have been named the Applebee's Student-Athletes of the Month for March. McCullough earns this honor for a second time this year.

Hall, a senior right-hander from Dumfries, Virginia, posted a 3-1 record and a 1.85 earned run average as the Pioneers posted a 12-6 record in the month, including 11-4 in South Atlantic Conference play.

Hall recorded 67 strikeouts in his five outings in the month including his NCAA Division II single-game record 22 strikeouts in Tusculum's 10-1 home win over Queens University of Charlotte on Mar. 15.  He broke the D-II national mark previously held by five other pitchers and ranks seventh for all NCAA divisions.  He achieved the record feat on 123 pitches as he struck out every Royals batter at least once including eight of the nine Queens' hitters at least two times each.

For his efforts, Hall was named the National and Southeast Regional Pitcher of the Week by the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association.  He was also named the SAC Pitcher of the Week twice during the month.

He also posted wins over Mars Hill and Coker.  He struck out 13 batters in 6.2 innings in an 11-7 win at Mars Hill (Mar. 10).  He tossed a two-hitter over eight shutout innings in TU's 9-0 home win over Coker. In that game he fanned 11 batters.

In his five starts in March, he tallied 10 more strikeouts in every outing.  For the month, he averaged 15.46 strikeouts per nine innings pitched for the month.

McCullough was undefeated in both singles and doubles for the Pioneers during March, with a perfect 7-0 record in each. She lost just one set in singles in her seven matches, and dropped a total of seven games in doubles which included four 6-0 sweeps with her doubles partner and sister, Caitlin.

The Belfast, Northern Ireland native played a total of 15 sets in singles during March and won 6-0 in five of them. In six of her seven matches, McCullough lost no more than two games in a single set, including a 6-2, 6-0 win over 59th-ranked Sasha Davidzenka of Queens on March 27. McCullough's toughest match of the month was a 4-6, 6-3, 6-4 victory over Gemma Southwick of Lenoir-Rhyne on March 29.

McCullough is 11-2 in singles this season, with both losses coming to nationally-ranked opponents in February, and is 12-1 in doubles with the loss coming to the fourth-ranked team in Division II from the University of Indianapolis on Feb. 15. For her career, McCullough is 47-6 in singles and 50-15 in doubles for the Pioneers.

The Tusculum Student-Athlete of the Month Award is sponsored by Applebee's Neighborhood Grill & Bar of Greeneville.  The Applebee's Student-Athlete of the Month Award honors one male and one female student-athlete each month from an in-season sport during the 2018-2019 academic year, recognizing their hard work, effort and performance.

2018-2019 Applebee's Student-Athletes of the Month