While leaving the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga campus this past summer, Rheagan Hall knew it was where she wanted to spend her college golf career.
"I told my mom, 'This is where I want to go to school,'" she recalled.
Wednesday afternoon, she put pen to paper to make it official.
The Cleveland High School standout and 2017 Best of Preps first-team selection signed with UTC on Wednesday. She is one of two area golfers set to join the program starting in 2018 - Ringgold senior Miranda Rich is expected to sign with the Mocs today.
"I remember going to the golf course as a baby, swinging golf clubs," Hall said during a phone interview Wednesday. "Going to the golf course every day and practicing is a routine I love. When I don't go, I just don't feel right.
"Getting a chance to play in college is something I've worked for for 18 years. The fact that it's over with, I can take a deep breath. I've found a home, and I don't have to worry about it."
Hall finished fifth at the Class AAA state tournament this fall with a two-day score of 147, following finishes of 14th, 10th and eighth in her first three prep seasons. She was also the City Prep, District 5 and Region 3 champion this season.
Rich has an 18-hole average of 80 and a tournament scoring average of 81, according to her recruiting profile. She recently placed third in the Southeastern Junior Golf Tour event at Dalton Golf & Country Club with a two-day score of 158.
Grad rate climbs
On Wednesday, the UTC athletic department announced a 4 percent jump in its graduation success rate in 2017, with 81 percent of the university's student-athletes graduating this past school year.
It's a major improvement from 2012, when only 50 percent graduated. In 2017, men's golf, women's golf and volleyball had 100 percent rates, while several others had rates of more than 90 percent: women's basketball (93), men's track and cross country (92) and women's track and cross country (91).
"The coaches and staff do an outstanding job of recruiting student-athletes with high-caliber credentials, both academically and athletically," UTC vice chancellor and athletic director Mark Wharton said in a release. "Combine that with our academic support staff's commitment to preparing all of our student-athletes for life after competition, and it is evident why our goal is to have a 100 percent graduation rate."
Carr honored
Mocs wrestler Bryce Carr was named Southern Conference wrestler of the week after an undefeated opening weekend that included a title at 184 pounds at Virginia Tech's Hokie Open.
It's the second time the senior, who's in his second season of competition for UTC, has received the honor.
Carr had a pin in 39 seconds against Virginia Military Institute on Friday, then won the Hokie Open title Sunday with a pair of decisions, a major decision and a technical fall.
Contact Gene Henley at ghenley@timesfreepress.com.