St. Ambrose started an important four-game series with Judson with a doubleheader split Friday afternoon in Elgin, Ill.

The Bees rallied to win the opener 16-11 before letting a late lead slip away in a 4-3 setback in game two.

In the first game, SAU trailed 9-5 after six innings before pushing across 11 runs over the last three frames to get the win.

The four-run seventh saw both Mason Heitzler and Eric Gonzalez hit by pitches with the bases loaded to force in runs. Michael Rago then followed with a two-run double to tie the game at 9-9.

Rago added another two-run double in the eighth. That followed RBIs from Heitzler and Peter Mitchell to put the Bees in front 13-9.

SAU added three insurance runs in the ninth. Matthew McBrien singled in two before Heitzler's sacrifice fly scored Bryce Vorwald for a 16-9 lead.

Judson scored twice in the bottom of the ninth to end the scoring.

Michael Moise earned the win with three innings of relief. He allowed four hits and two runs. Connor Bird started and worked the first 5 2/3 innings. Ian McGhiey recorded the final out in the sixth inning.

St. Ambrose (24-15, 19-7 CCAC) led early as Filip Milatovic started the scoring with a two-run single in the first inning. Vorwald hit a solo home run later in the inning.

Judson came back with a five-run first inning of its own. A two-run Jake Pauley homer in the second tied the game at 5-5 before the Eagles went back in front 9-5 after six.

Vorwald and Milatovic each finished with three hits. Pauley and Quinn Flanagan each had two hits. Mason Nauman also had a hit in the win.

SAU nearly completed the sweep.

A Michael Stupavsky run-scoring single in the top of the first gave the Bees a quick lead in Friday's finale. Milatovic singled in a pair in the fifth.

The 3-0 lead held up until the seventh.

Things unraveled quickly as Judson started with back-to-back singles before a one-out walk loaded the bases. An RBI groundout ended SAU's shutout hopes, and a Bee error allowed another run to score and kept the game alive. The next Judson hitter doubled to bring in the tying and walk-off-winning run.

Pauley, Milatovic and Stupavsky had the only St. Ambrose hits.

Aidan Stratton took the loss in relief of Dominic Guzman.

The two teams will complete their four-game set Saturday with a doubleheader at the Plaster Athletic Complex in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.