CHARLOTTESVILLE -- David Coleman flipped on ESPN last weekend and saw himself featured -- in two different video clips -- on "SportsCenter."

He wasn't the only one watching.

"I got a lot of texts and voice mails about that," said Coleman, a freshman right fielder for the University of Virginia baseball team.

U.Va., the No. 6 seed, advanced to the ACC tournament's championship game, thanks in no small part to the play of Coleman, a graduate of Richmond's Trinity Episcopal School. He was the only Cavalier named to the all-tournament team.

In four games in Jacksonville, Fla., Coleman went 5 for 13 to help U.Va. knock off North Carolina and Florida State, two of the nation's premier teams. But it was his prowess in the outfield that left observers marveling.

Of ESPN's top-10 plays from Friday, Coleman was responsible for Nos. 5 and 1.

On the former, Coleman dived to catch a ball hammered into the gap in right-center by Florida State's Dennis Guinn.

On the latter, Coleman raced toward the foul line to track down a fly ball. At nearly full speed, he made the catch an instant before hitting the wall and tumbling into the stands. The ball stayed in his glove.

"I was just keeping my eye on the ball, and all of the sudden my legs just came out from under me," Coleman said Tuesday night.

"I actually [landed] right in between the wall and the front row. It was pretty nice how I didn't get hurt or anything."

Coleman went 3 for 5 against the Seminoles as well.

"That was great," U.Va. coach Brian O'Connor said. "A game like that can do an unbelievable amount for a player's confidence."

Coleman is batting .278 this season, and he hopes to raise his average in the NCAA tournament. The third-seeded Wahoos are in Fullerton, Calif., where they'll open tourney play tomorrow night against No. 2 seed UCLA. Contact Jeff White at (804) 649-6838 or jwhite@timesdispatch.com.