St. Ambrose exploded for 36 runs to win a weekend series at Judson. Thirty-three of those runs came in the two Bee wins - a 16-2 victory in the opening game of a doubleheader Friday and a 17-3 win to close the series Saturday. SAU dropped the other game Friday 5-3.

The wins helped St. Ambrose (20-22, 15-7 CCAC) maintain a one-game lead in a tightly-bunched CCAC race. The Bees have a one-game lead over both Saint Xavier and St. Francis with three other teams within a game-and-a-half of first.

Behind 15 hits and five Judson errors, St. Ambrose won the opener 16-2 in eight innings. The game was scoreless through two innings before the Bees scored multiple runs in five of the final six frames. After scoring two runs in both the third and fourth innings, SAU broke the game open with a four-run fifth. The team tacked on two more runs in the seventh before closing it out with a six-run eighth.

Noah McCreary led the way going 4-for-6 with an RBI and two runs scored. Chris McFarland (two RBIs, three runs), Cooper Huckabone (two RBIs, two runs) and Nate Villagomez (three RBIs) had two hits apiece.

Brock Webber, Bryce Vincent, Jake Mucha, Mike Pawyza and Logan Rose each had one hit. Mucha scored four runs while Vincent and Pawyza each drove in runs.

Conor O'Hara went the distance, allowing just three hits and a pair of unearned runs over eight innings. He struck out six.

The Bees were even better Sunday, pounding out 13 hits in a seven-inning 17-3 victory. SAU scored five times in the first before adding a combined 11 runs over the third and fourth frames.

Webber, Mucha, McFarland and Adrian Zietara each collected a pair of hits. Mucha drove in four while Zietara had three RBIs and three runs scored. Webber finished with two RBIs and two runs. McCreary, Huckabone, Rose, Sam Wampler and Tyreece Morgan also had hits. Caden Thode scored a run in the win.

Nick Vollmert earned the win with two scoreless innings in relief. Jacob Bosse allowed two runs over three innings before giving way to Vollmert. Nick Hernandez and Brad Niedzwiedz each threw a single frame.

The Bee bats were silenced in a 5-3 loss in the second game of Friday's doubleheader. SAU scratched out just four hits and was unable to capitalize on five Judson errors.

Two of those Eagle errors came in the opening frame allowing an unearned run to give the Bees a 1-0 lead. But Judson came back with two runs in the second and fourth and one in the third to go in front 5-1. McCreary recorded a two-run single in the seventh to account for the final two St. Ambrose runs.

Joey Turek was charged with the loss. He struck out six over five innings. Nathaniel Johnson struck out two over two perfect frames.

St. Ambrose returns home to host Trinity Christian in a single game Tuesday.