CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. -- On a brisk, sunny Sunday in May, the Virginia Cavaliers prepared for their second-to-last home game of the season. The Wahoos, ranked seventh nationally, had walloped the Duke Blue Devils, 17-8, the night before and were hoping to sweep the weekend series. On Senior Day, 4,646 fans packed into Davenport Field, cheering on a young team that, despite lacking the superstar talent of recent UVa rosters, had cobbled wins together all season, often in the final outs.

But through the first two innings, the Cavaliers played sluggishly and disorganized. Duke claimed a 2-0 lead. UVa coach Brian O'Connor, now in his 10th season leading the Cavaliers, wasn't pleased.

Brian O'Connor's vision for Virginia has been a decade in the making. Mark Dolejs/US Presswire

"There was a lot of yelling, a lot of holding people accountable in our dugout, and it got pretty heated," O'Connor said. "The gist of it was, we weren't doing what we'd said we'd do. After the game, I reminded the team that you all chose to come here because you had high expectations for yourself and this team. You were told by our coaching staff that we'd hold you accountable every day. And it's our responsibility to challenge you when you're not holding up to your end of the bargain."

The reprimand worked. The Cavs went out in the bottom of the second and scored five runs before going on to win 14-6, claiming their fourth ACC series sweep of the season. The next weekend, the Wahoos traveled to Chapel Hill and won two out of three games against UNC, then the top-ranked team in the nation, capturing their first series at Carolina since 2007.

Accountability. Consistency. Expectations of how his players should work on and off the field. These foundations of the program run by O'Connor -- along with assistant coaches Kevin McMullan and Karl Kuhn -- have led to remarkable success over the past 10 years, whether the four-time ACC Coach of the Year is leading a roster of future major leaguers or a squad like this season's, which surprised many by being ranked in the nation's top 10 heading into the postseason.

Because although the faces change, the results remain the same. As the Cavaliers host another NCAA regional this weekend, the talented trio of "Oak, Mac and K" has transformed Virginia baseball into one of the nation's powerhouse programs.

Kyle Werman arrived at the University of Virginia in 2001. A strong academic student and starting second baseman for his high school squad, Werman hoped to walk onto the baseball team and felt that the Cavaliers, under then-head coach Dennis Womack, were a good choice.

At the time, UVa didn't compete with UNC, Clemson and Florida State for recruits; just a few years before, university administrators had considered reducing baseball to a club sport.

"What attracted people to UVa baseball then was that you're playing Division I, ACC baseball at one of the best academic schools in the country," Werman said. "The depth of the program wasn't where it is now."

Nor were the facilities. Although Davenport Field had been dedicated in 2002, the rest of the facilities were subpar: a chain-link fence circling the field's circumference, run-down bleachers and press box, and a less-than-sturdy dugout where players risked rolling an ankle. Still, Womack, who now works in sports administration at UVa, led the 2003 team, which included Werman, to a 29-25 record.

O'Connor arrived that July. In the first months of his tenure, he, McMullan and Kuhn focused more on baseball than on settling in, sharing a suite at an extended stay hotel rather than finding houses. They often worked at the baseball offices until midnight only to return to the field at 6 or 7 a.m.