By Adam Lucas

Mike Fox was sitting in the Carolina dugout before Sunday's regional final against UNC-Wilmington staring at a blank lineup card.

Minutes earlier, the Seahawks had completed a remarkable comeback against Elon, scoring 11 runs in the ninth inning to advance to play the Tar Heels. The rapid turn of events didn't leave the Tar Heel coaching staff with much time to ponder the sudden switch in their opponent.

"Who are they throwing?" Fox asked the dugout in general, as if someone else might have better information than one of the best head coaches in the nation (yes, in case you haven't noticed, it's true). "Mark (Scalf) said he wasn't even sure yet."

Informed that UNC-W planned to start sidearming right-hander Larry Salefsky on the mound, Fox began to make out his lineup. The first few were easy. Ackley, Shelton, Fedroff--of course. Flack, Seager, and Federowicz--obviously.

But what next? Realizing Salefsky's sidearm pitches would be easier for a left-handed batter to pick up, Fox wrote in the name of lefty Mark Fleury at the designated hitter spot. It was the first time all weekend Fleury had been in the lineup, because Fox had made the decision earlier in the week to sub Ryan Graepel for Garrett Gore as the starting shortstop, which put Gore--a reliable hitter against both righties and lefties--in the designated hitter's spot, squeezing out Fleury.

Got all that?

One of those moves--the shortstop swap to Graepel--was made over the course of a week, with stats and charts and conferences. One of them, however, was made while staring at a blank piece of paper and just that feeling a coach gets in the pit of his stomach.

For the night, Fleury was 3-for-3, drove in three runs, smashed a titanic home run, and earned a place on the regional All-Tournament team.

It all seems pretty easy, doesn't it? Insert a player here, remove a player there (don't forget, Gore picked up two hits and an RBI on Friday night and remains an essential part of the Tar Heel offense), and you've got yourself a regional title.

Carolina has now gone 9-0 over the last three years in regional play, outscoring opponents 95-43 in the process. While other teams--even national seeds--are clawing, scratching, and fighting just for the right to play in the super-regionals, the Tar Heels have yet to need an extra game.

"We don't take it for granted," said regional MVP Tim Fedroff. "If you have one bad outing at this time of year, your season can be over in a hurry."

Which makes Carolina's streak all the more impressive. Over the last three years, they've done it on some nights with offense, some nights with defense, and some nights with pitching. In the Cary regional, they used all three--16 runs the first night, a complete game gem from Alex White the second night, and a combination of all three on Sunday.

Maybe it's the heady times talking, but Fox seems to have an even better feel for this team than he had in 2006 or 2007. He knows exactly who to handle with kid gloves and who needs him to be stern. He knows when changes are needed...and when they're not needed, which is sometimes an even tougher decision to make.

"I think Rob (Wooten) got some things worked out in the bullpen yesterday," he said before Sunday's game, talking about Wooten's warmup tosses in the event he was needed in relief of White.

Around four hours later, he had to decide whether to stick with his senior stalwart, who had walked Mark Carver with one out in the ninth inning to load the bases and bring the tying run--in the person of .354-hitting, 13-homer smacking Nate Hall--to the plate.

In the bullpen, an army of Tar Heel relief arms were ready, conserved by a weekend of inactivity. Fox's move?

This time, it was no move. Wooten stayed on the mound.

The results: a strikeout looking of Hall. A strikeout swinging of Cody Stanley. The senior punctuated his last pitch with a fist pump and a shout, and the Tar Heels were into the round of 16.

In the postgame, the always-entertaining Fleury capped an eloquent recap of the state of Tar Heel baseball with this statement: "To be a part of North Carolina baseball right now is something special."

Especially coming from Fleury, the heartfelt sentiment was touching...and maybe a little suspicious.

His head coach waited a beat and then leaned up to the microphone.

"Mark wants to be in the lineup next weekend," he said with a wry smile.

That's a choice that won't be made for several more days. Given his history, there's a good chance Fox will make the right one.

Adam Lucas is the publisher of Tar Heel Monthly. He is also the author or co-author of four books on Carolina basketball.