Jacksonville, FL - Chip Ambres tripled in the tie-breaking runs in the eighth inning leading Carolina to a 4-1 win over first-place Jacksonville Sunday afternoon at the Baseball Grounds.

Ambres (2-5, R, 3B, 2RBI) drove a 1-0 pitch from reliever Franquelis Osoria (L, 0-2) against the right-centerfield wall on one hop to score Josh Willingham (2-5, R, 2-2B, K) and Joe Dillon (1-3, R, HBP, W, K). Later in the inning, Michael Tucker (0-3, RBI, S, K) suicide squeezed Ambres home for a 4-1 lead.

Mike McNutt (W, 1-0, 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0W, 3K) earned the win with a gritty seventh inning. Entering with the game tied, McNutt allowed a leadoff single to Nelson Castro, then threw a pickoff toss into the stands, pushing Castro to third. McNutt struck out the next three batters, including 6'7" Derek Michaelis, pinch-hitting in his first at-bat since being returned from Triple-A Las Vegas.

Nic Ungs (ND, 6IP, 2H, 1R, 1ER, 4W, 4K) allowed one hit over his first five innings, a solo homer by Daylan Holt in the second. Ungs pitched six frames, a season high, and stranded two in his final inning.

Trailing 1-0 in the fourth, Carolina (9-8) tied the game against Suns starter Ryan Ketchner with an unearned run in the fourth. Josh Wilson (1-5, R, K, SB) reached on an error by second baseman Willy Aybar. Willingham blasted a ground-rule double landing on the centerfield warning track and hopping over, sending Wilson to third. Jason Stokes (0-4, RBI, W, 2K) grounded out to third, chasing Wilson home with the tying run.

Bryan Gaal (ND, 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0W, 0K) pitched a scoreless eighth, while closer Kevin Cave (S, 3, 1IP, 0H, 0R, 1W, 0K) notched his third save with a game-ending double play.

With the win, the Mudcats snapped a season-high three-game losing streak, edging to within four games of the Suns (13-4) in the Eastern Division. The loss was Jacksonville's first at home this season in 10 games.

Bill Murphy (1-1, 3.12) starts the series finale Monday at 11:05 AM ET against Suns lefty Glenn Bott (1-1, 3.60).

Carolina 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 3 0 --- 4 9 1 11
Jacksonville 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- 1 4 1 7

WP - McNutt (1-0)
LP - Osoria (0-2)
S - Cave (3)

HR - Holt (2)
Time: 2:39
Att: 5,943

Notes: Sunday's win assures Carolina remaining .500 or above every day in the 2004 season... Six innings by Nic Ungs was his longest start of the season. Ungs previously had not thrown five innings in any of his first three outings... The four walks by Ungs was a career high. Ungs worked 61 consecutive innings to begin his pro career without issuing a walk. Ungs walked two Suns batters on four pitches, and the other two on 3-2 pitches, including Jacksonville's starting pitcher Ryan Ketchner.... Ketchner, a 14-game winner at Inland Marine in the California League last season, has been deaf since infancy. Ketchner wears two hearing aids, and communicates through reading lips and sign language. Only one deaf player has ever reached the major leagues, Curtis Pride, who spent time with the Yankees, Red Sox, Tigers and Braves. Pride, who lives only 30 minutes from Ketchner, has become friends with Ketchner over the recent years, and both even share the same agent... The Marlins reassigned RHP Pat Flury to the Mudcats prior to Sunday's game. Flury was active, but did not pitch. Flury compiled an 0-1 record in six appearances with an ERA of 15.00 at Triple-A Albuquerque.... Ambres extended his hitting streak to six games with a sixth inning single, the longest hitting streak by a Mudcat this season.

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