When Dustin Ackley came to the plate in the ninth inning Thursday night at Rosenblatt Stadium, his North Carolina team was on the wrong side of a blowout against Arizona State. But that didn't prevent the Tar Heels junior from doing what he does best.

Ackley lined a single to right field to extend his College World Series hitting streak to 15 games and his NCAA Tournament streak to 22 games. He finished his college career
just like he started -- by putting the bat on the baseball.

UNC falls to Arizona State 12-5 on Thursday to be eliminated from the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

Dustin Ackley's five hits lead the Tar Heels to an 11-4 win over Southern Miss to stay alive in the College World Series in Omaha, Neb.

North Carolina senior Mike McKee said in his N&O snapshots from Omaha on Sunday that the Tar Heels would have to "do this the hard way" after a first-round loss to Arizona State in 10 innings.

He was absolutely right. There is nothing easy about the Heels' path to the CWS final. It's a tough road, but not an impossible one.

The UNC baseball team leaves Boshamer Stadium on Thursday, June 11, 2009 as they head to the College world Series in Omaha, Neb.

Staff photo by Robert Willett

Becky Stewart of Burlington, and a small group of fans wave as the North Carolina baseball team departs today for the College World Series in Omaha outside of Boshamer Stadium on the UNC campus.

The University of North Carolina's baseball team will depart from Boshamer Stadium at 2:30 p.m. Thursday for Omaha and the College World Series. Team members will available for brief comments at that time.
The Tar Heels (47-16), seeded No. 4 nationally, will face No. 5
national seed Arizona State (49-12) at 2 p.m. Sunday in a game
televised on ESPN HD. To follow Carolina's progress, check out the News & Observer or www.newsobserver.com every day.

North Carolina will open the College World Series against Arizona State on Sunday at 2 p.m. EDT in Omaha, Neb.

The College World Series begins Saturday. Games will be played at 2 and 7 p.m. (Eastern) each day in Rosenblatt Stadium, which seats 23,170. The double-elimination tournament will run through June 23 or 24 depending upon results in the best-of-3 championship finals.

The Tar Heels (47-16) advanced to the championship tournament for the fourth straight season with 9-3 and 10-1 wins in the super regional over East Carolina.

Staff photo by Robert Willett

CHAPEL HILL — North Carolina celebrated like a team on its way to its first College World Series, not its fourth straight.

The Tar Heels slung their hats and gloves skyward and jumped into a celebratory dogpile after Sunday's 9-3 win over East Carolina in the Super Regional sent them back to Omaha and the CWS for the fourth straight year.