GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Zach Hartle has signed a national letter of intent to attend Tusculum College and play basketball for the Pioneers announced TC head coach Michael Jones.

Hartle, a 6-6, 210-pound forward from King, North Carolina, earned Northwest North Carolina Player of the Year honors while playing at Reagan High School. He averaged 17.4 points, 6.2 rebounds, 1.8 assists and 1.1 steals per game in leading Reagan to the Central Piedmont Conference championship.

In his final prep campaign, he garnered All-Conference, All-District and All-Northwest North Carolina accolades and was the recipient of the Frank Spencer Award, the region's top basketball honor as Reagan posted an 18-6 record (10-2 in conference play). He has scored over 1,000 points in his prep career and shot 41 percent from three-point territory during his senior campaign.

"We are so excited about Zach joining our program," said Coach Jones. "Zach brings much versatility to our team. He can play with his back to the basket and he has a great stroke from the perimeter. Best of all, he is a tremendous young man that is a perfect fit with Tusculum Basketball."

Coached by Jeff Overby, Hartle is a two-time All-Central Piedmont Conference selection (2014, 2015) and was named the Most Valuable Player of the Frank Spencer Holiday Classic, one of the most prestigious basketball tournaments in Northwest North Carolina.

Hartle's playing experience also includes one season with the AAU Team Winston and two year with the CP3 All-Stars.

Tusculum College, the first college in Tennessee and the 28th oldest in the nation, is a liberal arts institution committed to providing a liberal arts education in a Judeo-Christian and civic arts environment, with pathways for career preparation, personal development and civic engagement. Approximately twenty-one hundred students are enrolled on the main campus in Greeneville and three off-site locations in East Tennessee. The academic programs for both traditional-aged students and working adults served through the Graduate and Professional Studies program are delivered using focused calendars.

Tusculum is a NCAA Division II member of the South Atlantic Conference, which is comprised of 12 colleges and universities located in Tennessee, North Carolina and South Carolina.

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