Auburn vs. Milwaukee weather delay: When NCAA Regional game will resume

It’s Mother Nature’s turn to have her say. Auburn’s NCAA Tournament opener against Milwaukee has been halted due to weather.

The Tigers and Panthers were sent into a delay during the bottom of the sixth inning Friday after lightning was detected within eight miles of the stadium. Auburn Baseball announced the stoppage on social media.

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“Weather delay,” the program posted. “Lightning has been detected within 8 miles to halt the game in the middle of the 6th.”

At the time of the delay, Milwaukee held an 11-5 lead over Auburn in the opening game of the Auburn Regional.

UPDATE: The game has now resumed after a short delay.

The interruption comes in a game that has largely belonged to the Panthers. Milwaukee, which entered the NCAA Tournament with a 25-31 record, erupted offensively from the opening innings and built a commanding lead before Auburn could find much rhythm.

The Panthers scored 10 runs before the Tigers finally broke through with three runs in the bottom of the fourth inning. Milwaukee later added another run to push their advantage to 11-5 before the weather moved into the area.

Despite entering the tournament with a losing overall record, Milwaukee arrived in Auburn riding a seven-game winning streak after capturing the Horizon League Tournament championship. The Panthers have continued the offensive surge that carried them into the postseason, putting constant pressure on Auburn’s pitching staff throughout Friday’s contest.

Prior to the regional, Auburn head coach Butch Thompson made it clear his team was not overlooking Milwaukee despite the Panthers’ record.

“They have our full attention,” Thompson said. “We’ve got to play, try to get the same standard effort that we’ve been putting out there that will be required in this first game of the regional.”

Milwaukee entered Friday averaging nearly 10 runs per game during its winning streak, and that production has carried over onto the NCAA Tournament stage.

Meanwhile, Auburn is attempting to mount a comeback after digging an early hole. The Tigers earned a home regional thanks to a strong regular season and entered the postseason with aspirations of making another deep run under Thompson.

The veteran head coach spent much of the week emphasizing the importance of handling adversity, a message that has quickly become relevant.

“I want our focus to be like, ‘Hey, when adversity hits, we’re not laughing at it, but at the same time, we welcome it,’” Thompson said. “We’re ready for it, because that’s what it’s going to take to get out of this regional.”

Once play resumes, Auburn will have 12 outs remaining to try and erase a six-run deficit. The winner advances in the winner’s bracket of the Auburn Regional, while the loser will be pushed into an elimination game and face a much more difficult path toward advancing.