HELENA, Mont. --- Former Tusculum College pitcher Rob Currie made his professional debut Tuesday night with the Helena Brewers, the Rookie League affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers.

Currie, who starred on the Tusculum diamond the past two years, pitched 1.2 innings in relief in Helena's 10-5 season-opening win over the Missoula Ospreys. Currie surrendered a hit, walked two and struck out one.

Currie, a 6-6, 240-pound right-hander from St. Charles, Ill., was selected by Milwaukee in the 12th round of the 2009 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft earlier this month. Currie was the 376th overall pick, becoming the highest selected player for Tusculum head coach Doug Jones. Currie became the fifth player to be drafted during the Jones' era and 15th overall to sign professionally.

Currie, a 6-6, 240-pound relief pitcher from St. Charles, Ill., was named to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association All-American Team last month.

Currie was the ace of the Tusculum bullpen this past season, earning a spot on the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association Division II All-America Team. He made 21 appearances last year, where he posted a 5-1 record with a 1.21 earned run average to go along with six saves. The six saves were the fourth-most ever by a Pioneer reliever. Currie limited the opposition to a .213 batting average, while striking out at team-best 57 with only 20 walks in his 52 innings of work.

He has been named to three NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region teams this past season, including Daktronics, NCBWA and the American Baseball Coaches Association. Currie was also an All-South Atlantic Conference First Team selection.

In his two seasons at Tusculum, Currie posted a career 2.11 ERA in his 38 mound appearances for the Pioneers that included nine starts, including a nine-inning complete game effort in TC's 4-2 win over Catawba College in the 2008 SAC Tournament championship game. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC All-Tournament Team.

Currie recorded 97 strikeouts in 102.1 innings pitched in a Tusculum uniform. He tallied a 9-6 career mark to go along with seven career saves, the seventh most in school history.

Tusculum captured its fourth South Atlantic Conference title in the last five years, while posting a 36-18 record. The Pioneers also earned an at-large bid to the NCAA Division II Tournament, TC's third straight postseason appearance and fifth in the last seven years. Tusculum's five NCAA Tournament showings are the most in conference history.

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