By Michael Adams
madams@onthesidelinessports.com

Many districts will conclude the first round of league play this week with games on Tuesday and Thursday, due to the holiday weekend.

District 26-6A had a bit of a shuffle from outcomes of games. Bowie and Dripping Springs sit at the top of the standings. The Bulldogs and Tigers split their two-game series on March 11-12, with that being the only district loss for both teams.

Lake Travis and Westlake just one-game back, while Johnson and Anderson are two-games back. The playoff race should be interesting as both Bowie and Dripping Springs have series with Westlake and Lake Travis on the horizon in April.

District 25-5A is also another race to keep an eye on. Cedar Park, Liberty Hill and Hays are tied at the top of the standings at 3-1, while Rouse and Lehman are a game back at 2-2. The Timberwolves and Hawks face off in a two games series April 2 and April 5, while Liberty Hill closes out the season on April 16 and April 19 with Hays.

Here are five games we are watching this week:

Game of the Week

Elgin (7-14, 2-1) vs. Georgetown (9-9-1, 4-0)

7 p.m., Tuesday at Georgetown; 7 p.m., Thursday at Elgin

Elgin sits  1½ games behind Georgetown and Hendrickson in the District 23-5A standings. The Eagles have won four straight but have yet to be tested in district play. Don’t let the Wildcats’ 7-14 record fool you. Elgin is well tested with arguably one of the most difficult non-district schedules in the area, which featured the likes of Class 4A power Burnet (15-2), Class 6A blueblood Lake Travis, McCallum and Cedar Park.

Four series we’re watching

Lago Vista (12-2-1, 4-0) vs. Gateway (8-7-1, 3-2)

7 p.m., Tuesday at Gateway; 7 p.m., Thursday at Lago Vista

Liberty Hill (15-4-2, 3-1) vs. Leander (11-9, 1-3)

7 p.m., Tuesday at Leander; 7 p.m., Thursday at Liberty Hill

Stony Point (10-12, 2-2) vs. Cedar Ridge (16-6, 5-1)

7 p.m., Tuesday at Stony Point; 7 p.m., Thursday at Cedar Ridge

Westlake (14-7-1, 3-2) vs. Anderson (15-6. 2-4)

7 p.m., Tuesday at Nelson Field; 7 p.m., Thursday at Westlake

Rankings

Each week for the remainder of the regular season, On the Sidelines Sports will rank the top five baseball teams in the Greater Austin Metro Area by classification. Here are the weekly rankings for March 25.

Class 6A

1. Bowie, 17-5 (Last ranking: 4)

2. Lake Travis, 15-8-1 (LR: 3)

3. San Marcos, 19-4 (LR: 1)

4. Weiss, 13-6-1 (LR: NR)

5. Cedar Ridge, 16-6 (LR: 5)

Class 5A

1. Liberty Hill, 15-4 (LR: 3)

2. Cedar Park, 15-4 (LR: 4)

3. Hays, 14-4 (LR: 1)

4. Rouse, 15-6 (LR: 2)

5. Hendrickson, 11-7 (LR: NR)

Class 4A

1. Thorndale, 14-1-1 (LR: 1)

2. Lago Vista, 12-2-1 (LR: 2)

3. Thrall, 12-4-1 (LR: 3)

4. Gateway, 8-7-1 (LR: NR)

5. Taylor, 9-7-2 (LR: NR)