The Seminoles were down 5-2 when Dennis Guinn hit a grand slam homer. The Tarheels tied up the game in the top of the next inning. But the Tarheels reliever came unglued in the bottom of the ninth when he hit the 1st Seminole batter and walked the next 2. Shane Robinson came to bat and got his 1st hit of the day to WIN the game and beat the 2nd seeded Tarheels 7-6.

Go Noles... Way to Stay Alive in the Tournament!!!

Good Luck, Noles

This is not the first time FSU could come out of nowhere to win the ACC tourny.

Quote:UNC 010 022 100 6 11 0
FSU 001 005 001 7 9 0

W - Tucker (2-1) L - Carignan (1-3)

Noles upset No. 2 seed UNC in ACC Tournament
by Chris Nee

Going into the sixth inning it looked as though the Florida State baseball team might be returning to Tallahassee before the weekend. Luckily, Dennis Guinn had other plans. The sophomore first baseman's grand slam in the bottom of the sixth, combined with some clutch pitching and a few favors from the opposition was just enough to help FSU post a 7-6 victory of over No. 2 seed North Carolina in an elimination game of the ACC Tournament.

Florida State struggled early while the Tar Heels built a 5-1 lead through the first five innings. Then the Seminoles had their biggest inning of the last month thanks to Guinn's grand slam home run, which gave FSU a 6-5 lead. Guinn, who thought he hit a double when it came off the bat, was pleased to drive the ball out of the park and provide the Seminoles with some much needed offense.

"Our backs were against the wall the whole game and I thought our team was battling and getting on base and moving everyone up." Guinn said. "I was glad to have that chance, it is a great feeling to put us ahead at that point."

Mike Martin's club was not able to maintain the lead as UNC tied the score in the top of the seventh on a double by Chad Flack and a single by Seth Williams. It remained that way until the ninth thanks to a collective effort from the FSU's bullpen and closer Luke Tucker, who retired six consecutive batters over the final two innings. Tucker struck out five of six batters he faced including all three in the ninth. The pitching by the bullpen gave the offense a chance to extend their stay in the Tournament and it paid off in the bottom of the ninth.

"I love that situation," Tucker said. "A tie ballgame, I know I only need to give our hitters a few innings and they can come through for us and they did."

In the bottom of the ninth FSU got some help when Tar Heel pitcher Andrew Carignan hit Tommy Oravetz with a pitch and walked Tony Thomas on a 3-2 pitch. With two men on base, catcher Danny Diaz laid down a successful bunt to load the bases. Junior center fielder Shane Robinson then made the decisive hit with a bases-loaded single to the outfield wall giving FSU the 7-6 win.

The win not only eliminated the No. 2 seed from the ACC Tournament, it also marked a rare positive for a Seminole program that has been on a downward spiral for nearly two months.

"That is Florida State University," Martin said, "We are known to play hard and that's one of the first things I looked for when I came to the ballpark today, would our ball club compete like their reputation, and they proved it throughout 27 outs."

"The fact that we won is very important, but effort and playing as a team is what our University is about. This is very important to me as a Seminole and as a coach, this was a big win."

Thursday marked the third consecutive year that FSU (40-18) has earned a walk-off win against the North Carolina (45-13) in the ACC tournament. Two years ago, the Seminoles used a safety squeeze bunt to bring home the winning run in the 11th inning for an 8-7 win. Last year, FSU won 3-2 on a throwing error in the bottom of the 12th.

Florida State managed nine hits on the afternoon with Dennis Guinn being the only player with more than one hit. Every Seminole in the starting lineup had a hit except designated hitter Tommy Oravetz. Second baseman Tony Thomas hit his fifth home run of the season in the third inning for FSU's first run of the game.

With the win, Florida State moves on to meet the loser of Thursday's game between Virginia and NC State. First pitch is scheduled for 4:00 p.m. Friday game where the loser will be eliminated from the tournament.

Section B Online Player of the Game:
Dennis Guinn (2-4, 1 R, 4 RBI, 2B, Grand Slam HR)