ABCA All-Americans

Greensboro, N.C.----Wingate University redshirt sophomore right-hander Brody McCullough picked up a huge honor Friday afternoon, earning third team All-American accolades from the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA). McCullough earns All-American honors for the first time in his career. He is one of 10 All-Americans that will be playing at the NCAA Division II championships this weekend in Cary.

McCullough is the first Bulldog to earn All-American recognition since 2016, when Shane Billings was a consensus All-American for the second straight season. He is the first Wingate pitcher to earn All-American honors since 1998, when Danny Lampley earned third team accolades from the ABCA.

McCullough adds this honor to an impressive lists of accolades this year. The redshirt sophomore earned ABCA first team All-Region honors earlier this week. He picked up first team All-SAC accolades in April, while earning second team All-Region recognition from the D2CCA in May. He was named the SAC and Region Pitcher of the Week three times in 2021.

McCullough has had a great season on the mound, going 6-2 with a 2.11 ERA, adding four saves. He has piled up 66 strikeouts in 55 1/3 innings of work, while opponents are hitting just .196 against him. He has allowed just 13 earned runs and 39 hits in his 55 1/3 innings of work. McCullough has 18 appearances on the season, including four starts and 14 bullpen appearances.

McCullough had an incredible stretch during the 2021 season that spanned 12 appearances. In those 12 outings he went 36 1/3 innings, allowing just two runs on 19 hits while striking out 45. He notched five wins and three saves in that stretch. That included starts against top-25 opponents in Catawba and Mount Olive, where he tossed a combined 11 shutout innings, allowing just three hits while striking out 14.

McCullough tossed five shutout innings against LMU, striking out six to earn the victory. Three days after tossing five shutout innings in the Mount Olive win he went 5 2/3 in relief against Carson-Newman, striking out four while allowing just two hits in the shutout effort to pick up the win. McCullough tossed five innings against #11 Mount Olive in the NCAA Southeast Regionals, striking out five while allowing three earned runs to earn the win. He was back on the mound two days later, tossing two no-hit innings in relief to earn the save and send the 'Dogs to their first-ever NCAA Division II World Series.

Wingate is back in action Sunday, facing #9 Angelo State in the opening round of the NCAA Division II baseball championships in Cary, N.C. at 2 p.m. Tickets for every contest in Cary are free. The Bulldogs will be back in action Tuesday.

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
Founded in 1896, Wingate University is a laboratory of difference-making that serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Wingate offers 36 undergraduate majors as well as six master's and four doctoral programs. The University is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences; the Levine College of Health Sciences; the Byrum School of Business; and the College of Professional Studies, which includes the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences.
 
Wingate is the leading healthcare education provider in western North Carolina, and nearly one in five Wingate undergraduate students is preparing to be a pharmacist, physician assistant, physical therapist, occupational therapist or nurse. Athletes on Wingate's 23 teams compete in NCAA Division II and have brought home the SAC Echols Athletic Excellence Award for 13 years straight. The University's motto is "Faith, Knowledge, Service." View current news and videos at www.wingate.edu.