May 20, 1999

Box Score

DURHAM, N.C. (AP) -- Jamie Hammond has long dreamed of beating North Carolina, although the left-hander did think he would be pitching for arch-rival N.C. State when it happened.

The Tar Heels probably wish Hammond hadn't decided to transfer to Maryland after 1997 as the crafty junior from Greensboro shut down North Carolina 6-3 Thursday in the ACC baseball tournament.

The loss knocked the fourth-seeded Tar Heels (40-16) out of the double-elimination event after two games for only the second time in school history. North Carolina also went 0-2 at Durham Bulls Athletic Park in '96.

The win put for the eighth-seeded Terrapins in the quarterfinals for the first time since 1988.

I'm not sure our players and coaches brought enough clothes with them. We may have to do laundry,'' Maryland coach Tom Bradley said.

Hammond was paired opposite North Carolina fireballer Kyle Snyder, a likely first-round draft pick. But Hammond got the best of the game, allowing three runs over eight innings to improve his record to 5-4.

My dream was to play college baseball and I just didn't see the opportunity lasting at N.C. State,'' Hammond said. A new opportunity opened up for me and I wanted to play baseball.''

The rivalry with the Tar Heels is just as big for him at Maryland as it was at N.C. State, he said.

It has been a dream of mine to beat UNC ever since coming to college,'' he said. It was fun to play against those guys. It's great competition.''

Hammond laughed when asked about his matchup with Snyder, who throws in the low to mid 90 mph-range and attracted about 20 scouts with radar guns.

I feel like the pressure was all on him,'' Hammond said. All the scouts are here to see him. I know they're not here to see me. I feel like I can go out there - I'm a nobody - and quietly get the job done.''

Snyder was cruising along with a no-hitter into the fourth inning before Craig Munroe turned on a fastball for a two-run homer that seemed to jump-start the Terrapins (23-32-1).

It was good to just lift the team up,'' said Munroe, who belted his 15th homer of the year. He's a very dominant pitcher out there, it was just an opportunity to get the team to believe that we can actually beat this team. It was good to get on the board.''

Maryland scored three unearned runs in the eighth that proved big, considering the Tar Heels mounted a mini rally in the ninth with two runs.

But it was too little, too late for North Carolina, which came into the tourney with the highest batting average (.324) in school history, but went 12-for-64 (.188) with 10 errors in its two losses.

We pressed a little bit, especially offensively,'' said North Carolina coach Mike Fox. We haven't swung the bat very well in the last four or five games and I think that starts creeping into your mind set a little bit and it permeates throughout your team. That's a hard thing to stop sometimes.''

The Tar Heels, who lost seven of their last 10, will now have to wait out an NCAA at-large bid.

I still have a lot of confidence in this team,'' Fox said. I think we're a quality team and I hope we get a chance to prove that in about a week.''

By DAVID DROSCHAK, AP Sports Writer