Bulldogs First Trip to State Starts with 2 Seed; Open Class C Tournament with Rematch of Arlington

The Arlington Eagles defeated the Auburn Bulldogs 5-0 in the District C-4 final at Tushla Field in Auburn on Friday night, but the #3 rated Bulldogs weren’t the only high seed to be upset in the district final. Both teams ahead of Auburn in wildcard points, Lincoln Lutheran and Malcom, also suffered defeats Friday night and due to late changes in wildcard points, the Bulldogs wound up not only securing one of two wildcard spots in the state tournament, but moved up to the #2 seed at state.
Lincoln Lutheran would take the second wildcard spot at state and the Clippers of Malcolm were eliminated short of the state tournament. 
Auburn’s first round game at the state tournament will be a rematch against Arlington on Saturday, May 16 at 4pm at Papillion LaVista South High School. 
The Bulldogs will have all the motivation needed on Saturday after being upset by the Eagles in the district final last Friday.
Both pitchers were tough to hit off in the district final, including Auburn’s Mason Schultz, but the Eagles would break through in the top of the fourth inning to score the first two runs of the game. The Eagles added three more runs in the fifth to pull ahead 5-0, while the Bulldogs failed to answer.
The game featured nine total hits, five by Arlington and four by Auburn, but the Eagles’ hits came at the right time. Auburn’s Jackson Warner recorded a game-high two hits, including a ground rule double over the fence, but Auburn would get shut out, resulting in a district-runner up plaque.
The Bulldogs enter state with a record of 19-6. Also featured on their side of the bracket are #3 Lincoln Lutheran and #6 Roncalli Catholic. The Bulldogs will play their second round game on Monday either at 7 p.m. in the case of a first round win, or 1 p.m. if they lose their tournament opener.