SANFORD - Tim Haggie, two-season point guard for the Central Carolina Community College Men's Cougar basketball team, has been awarded a full-ride athletic scholarship to Fayetteville State University.

Haggie, the son of Stacy and Alisa Harrison, of Fayetteville, and Tony Haggie Sr., of Memphis, Tenn., will play point guard for the FSU Broncos starting in the fall. FSU is a National Collegiate Athletic Association Division II school.

"Very few of the 100,000 NCAA student-athletes competing at the 300 Division II schools in the United States and Canada receive a full athletic grant," said Dr. Pat O'Brien, chair of the Division II Presidents Council and president of Texas A&M University, on the NCAA's Division II web site, www.ncaa.org.

O'Brien added that Division II student-athletes "are encouraged to achieve excellence in their sport, in the classroom and in their community."

Haggie graduates from CCCC in May with an Associate in Arts degree. He plans to major in biology at FSU and then earn a master's degree in sports medicine to become an athletic trainer.

"It's an honor for me to receive this scholarship," he said. "It proves that hard work pays off. It takes dedication not only on the court, but also in the classroom. Coaches want athletes with good grades - the better the grades, the better your chances."

At CCCC, Haggie was a standout athlete, both on the court and in the classroom. He has maintained a 3.0 GPA at CCCC. As a freshman on the court, he scored 15 points per game and was the leading vote getter for the NCJAA All Freshmen First Team.

He scored a record 21 points per game in his sophomore year, leading the Tar Heel Conference and standing ninth in the United States among community college athletes for 2012-13. For his achievements, Haggie made All Region First Team, All Region All Academic, and All American Honorable Mention. While attending CCCC, Haggie was also a work-study student and worked at a fast food restaurant.

"I couldn't be more impressed with Tim," said Mike Neal, CCCC Athletic Director. "He continually amazes me. People on campus know him both by name and by his character."

CCCC is a member of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division III's Region X, which includes North and South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia. Doug Connor has been the head men's basketball coach for eight years. During that time, he has coached more than 20 players that have gone on to play basketball at 18 different NCAA Division I, II and III colleges and universities.

For more information about Cougar sports, visit www.cccc.edu/sports. For more information about Cougar men's basketball, contact Connor at 919-499-8819.