Zac Brown presented SAC Man of the Year award at Homecoming

MARS HILL, N.C. - Mars Hill alum and former pitcher for the Mars Hill baseball team, Zac Brown, was presented with the 2017-18 South Atlantic Conference Man of the Year award between the first and second quarter at Saturday's homecoming football game versus Tusculum.

Brown, a senior mathematics major from Albemarle, N.C. graduated from Mars Hill with a 3.75 GPA in May of 2018. A four-time SAC Commissioner's Honor Roll and Mars Hill Dean's List selection, Brown was a Mars Hill Marshall in 2017 and was named the University's Man of the Year in 2017-18.

Mars Hill Head Baseball Coach Aaron Rembert stated, "What a great honor and achievement for Zac Brown.  Zac has excelled and been a leader on the field, in the classroom, and in the community for four years.  He has embraced the student-athlete experience and gotten so much out of his time while he has been at MHU.  He is a great ambassador for this university and we were so honored to have him in our program."

On the diamond, Brown was a two-time All-SAC selection, earning All-Defensive team honors in 2017 and 2018. He was named to the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA)/Rawlings Gold Glove Team as the only Division II selection in 2017. He finished the 2018 season ranked fifth in the SAC in ERA (3.93) and strikeouts (63). He holds the Mars Hill records for innings pitched (259.2), pitching decisions (33), pickoffs (21), season strikeouts (81), career strikeouts (219) and is second in win-loss percentage (.594). 

Brown was also very active off the field serving as the president of the Mars Hill Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, a math tutor and a member of the Faculty Athletics Committee. He volunteered with the Lord's Harvest Program at Mars Hill Baptist Church, was a member of the Forge Men's Bible Study and volunteered for several projects with Mars Hill Elementary. Zac was also very active in planning and organizing the first ever Lion Choice Awards in the spring of 2018. 

Athletic Director David Riggins stated, "I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this award. Zac has been a leader on his team, a leader on our campus and a leader in his community. He is a Man of the Year in every sense of the award."