AUSTIN, Texas --- Tusculum University student-athlete Annie McCullough has been named to the 2020 NCAA Division II Academic All-America® Women's At-Large first team as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).

McCullough returns to the Academic All-America® team for a second straight year after earning second team distinction last year. She becomes the second player in program history to garner Academic All-America® honors multiple times joining three-time winner Franziska Funke (2016, 2017, 2018).  This also marks the fifth straight season that a TU women's tennis player has garnered Academic All-America® laurels and sixth time overall.

The Academic All-America® At-Large program includes the sports of fencing, golf, gymnastics, ice hockey, lacrosse, rifle, skiing, swimming and diving, tennis, water polo for both men and women; bowling, crew, beach volleyball and field hockey for women; and volleyball and wrestling for men.

McCullough graduated from Tusculum with a 3.99 cumulative grade point average and earned her bachelor's degree in chemistry.  Last month, she was named the South Atlantic Conference Women's Tennis Scholar Athlete of the Year for a second straight season.

The Belfast, Northern Ireland native is a member of the SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll, Tusculum Athletic Director's Honor Roll, Dean's List, President's List and Charles Oliver Gray Honors List. She has garnered ITA Scholar Athlete three times.

Last month, Annie, along with her twin sister Caitlin, became the first student-athletes in TU women's tennis history to earn NCAA Division II All-America distinction by the Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA).  The duo was one of 16 teams honored in doubles, while Annie was among 23 student-athletes recognized in singles play.

Annie and Caitlin were also both named to the CoSIDA Academic All-District 3 Women's At-Large first team last month, becoming the first siblings in TU women's tennis history to garner this accolade in the same year.

The McCulloughs finished as the Division II runner-up in doubles at the ITA Cup in Rome, Georgia and ended the fall with a 10-3 overall record. They concluded the fall season ranked second in the Oracle/ITA Division II Women's Tennis National rankings, and had a 4-2 record against ranked opponents during the fall. The McCulloughs did not appear in any matches during the spring due to injuries, and have a 54-12 record in three seasons together at Tusculum thus far.

In singles, McCullough went 10-3 during the fall to boost her career singles record (dual matches and tournaments) to 91-15. She was 3-3 against nationally-ranked opponents during the fall, including wins over All-Americans Kierstin Hensley of West Virginia State and Anna Savchenko of Azusa Pacific at the ITA Cup, with all three of her losses coming to All-American players. She was ranked seventh in Division II in singles at the conclusion of the fall portion of the season.

Tusculum, which was ranked as high as 17th in the ITA Division II Women's National Team Rankings during the season, ended the abbreviated 2019-20 campaign with a 6-3 overall record and a 2-1 record in conference competition. The Pioneers were among 12 teams that received votes outside the Top 25 in the final ITA rankings of the season.

The Division II and III CoSIDA Academic All-America® programs are partially financially supported by the NCAA Division II and III national governance structures to assist CoSIDA with handling the awards fulfillment aspects for the 2019-20 Divisions II and III Academic All-America® programs. The NAIA CoSIDA Academic All-America® program is partially financially supported through the NAIA national office.

2020 CoSIDA Academic All-America Division II Women's At-Large Team

Academic All-American of the Year: Amanda Kautzer, Michigan Tech