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Looking back, Mike Moss said he felt "pretty good" about his chances of producing early for the University of Maryland baseball team, just as he had in two All-Gazette first-team seasons at Walter Johnson High.

He was right; it just took a bit longer than expected.

"It is a whole different game," said Moss. "I felt pretty good offensively and I felt pretty good defensively coming in, but I had so much to learn. I had no idea."

His Walter Johnson resume included school records for batting average (.623), runs batted in (28), hits (33) and runs (25) in a single season, all set as a junior, when he also racked up 10 doubles and 17 walks. He followed that performance by batting .545 with 27 RBI, five doubles, seven triples, four home runs and 26 runs as a senior.

But he made just nine appearances as a freshman in College Park. Over the last two seasons, he played in a combined 55 games, with 17 starts, backing up catcher Chad Durakis, now playing in the Baltimore Orioles minor league system. Moss also saw time at designated hitter during those first three seasons.

"I'm a completely different player than I was as a freshman," Moss said. "Both offensively and defensively. I've learned a whole lot since I've been here and I've worked as hard as I could, soaking up everything. [Terrapins coach Terry Rupp] stuck with me and he taught me a whole lot, especially on the defensive end. Catching defensively was probably my worst tool. Now it's probably my strongest."

With Durakis having moved, Moss has become the team's No. 1 catcher in his final college season. It is a role he covets, and in which he has thrived.

Through Maryland's weekend series at the University of Virginia, Moss was batting .291 (16 for 55) with three home runs and 10 RBI in 20 games, 17 of which were starts. Defensively, the 6-foot-2, 215-pounder had committed just one error in 114 chances, with 10 assists.

"It's great this year to be the guy and to have that job and to have that responsibility," he said. "It's been a progression. … If you're recruited to play at the ACC level, you have had a pretty successful high school career. The real X-factor is how you handle failure."

Wootton graduate Will Greenberg never had to worry too much about that, having taken a different path to College Park. After spending his freshman year at Washington College, Greenberg transferred to Maryland and jumped right in to the lineup.

He batted .299 in 40 appearances as a sophomore. Last season he hit .304 with four home runs, 11 doubles and 24 RBI in 53 games, 49 of which were starts.

"I came in and they told me I would catch some and DH," Greenberg said. "I got a good amount of playing time my sophomore year. It's nice to have a starting role. I'm happy with the way things are going."

Greenberg is doing a little bit of everything for the Terrapins, as they push for a berth in the Atlantic Coast Conference tournament. He has logged time at three different positions — catcher, first base and the outfield — to keep his hot bat and steady glove in the lineup.

Through the weekend, Greenberg was fourth on the team with a .307 batting average (27 for 88) with 15 runs, five doubles, two triples, a home run and nine RBI in 24 games. He missed a handful of contests because of an injury.

"He's a very solid player," said Moss of Greenberg, who had committed just one error despite the position changes. "He's versatile and he's a really good athlete. He's a real big, strong kid. He's one of my closest friends and we've really pushed each other the last couple of years to be as good as we can be. It's really good to have him there."

Maryland faces important weekend series with Virginia Tech and Duke in the next two weeks. Neither Moss nor Greenberg has ever participated in an ACC tournament, which includes the top eight out of the conference's 12 programs.

"I really want to help the team get to the ACC tournament," Greenberg said. "It would be a nice way for Mike and I to go out. We've really talked about it. If we can make the ACC Tournament, then anything can happen. Chances are you'll be able to make the [NCAA] regionals. Fresno had something like 30 losses last year and they won [a national title]."