Johnson, McCullough sisters named Zaxby's Athletes of the Week

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. --- Tusculum University defensive back David Johnson and tennis players Annie and Caitlin McCullough have been named the Zaxby's Athletes of the Week.

Johnson, who was playing in his first game since a near-season ending injury last month, recorded five tackles including two for loss with a sack and broke up five passes in a 21-19 South Atlantic Conference win at UVa-Wise on Saturday. Johnson and the TU defense limited the Cavaliers to 253 yards on the day and recorded six sacks and 13 pass break ups.

Johnson, a senior from Greenwood, South Carolina, has accounted for 18 tackles including four for loss, one sack, one interception and his eight pass break-ups are the second-most on the team in his five outings.

The McCulloughs advanced to the Division II national championship match at the ITA Cup in Rome, Georgia after winning their first three matches of the tournament. They opened play with a 6-2, 6-3 victory over Ashley Penshorn and Marina Vigil of St. Mary's (Texas), then defeated the top-seeded pair of Ulyana Grib and Valeriya Pogrebnyak of Lynn 6-1, 6-4 in the quarterfinals. On Friday, the McCulloughs rallied from a set down and held off a total of four match points in a 4-6, 7-6 (11-9), (11-9) win over fourth-seeded Nikol Alekseeva and Anna Novikova of Indianapolis.

Saturday's championship match was delayed for several hours by rain and eventually moved indoors, where Nova Southeastern's duo of Natalie Espinal and Sarah Wardenburg claimed a 7-6 (7-3), 6-4 win to take the Division II title over the Belfast, Northern Ireland natives, who are 10-3 this season and 62-14 in doubles in three years together at Tusculum.

Annie McCullough also competed in singles at the ITA Cup, winning two of her three matches including a 6-0, 7-5 win over Kierstin Hensley of West Virginia State in her tournament opener and a 6-2, 6-3 win over Anna Savchenko of Azusa Pacific in the consolation round. She has a four-year singles record of 91-15 at Tusculum, including a 35-7 mark in tournament competition.

The Tusculum University Athlete of the Week Award is sponsored by Zaxby's, located at 3280 Andrew Johnson Highway in Greeneville.  The Zaxby's Athlete of the Week Award honors one male and one female athlete each week from an in-season sport.

2019-2020 Zaxby's Athletes of the Week