Sluggish first and third quarters proved too much to overcome as St. Ambrose fell to Saint Mary 12-8 Saturday afternoon at the St. Vincent Athletic Complex.

The Bees fell behind 4-0 after one period and after getting within 6-4 at the half, were outscored 5-1 in the third in falling to 5-6 overall and 1-3 in the KCAC.

The 4-0 first-quarter deficit ultimately became a 5-0 hole after the Spires scored in the opening seconds of the second quarter. Jared Morgan got St. Ambrose on the board with back-to-back goals two minutes apart. Justin O'Marrah scored to trim the margin to two goals and after a Saint Mary goal, Thomas Parker scored in the final two minutes of the half to put the Bees down just 6-4 at the break.

The Spires (5-5, 2-0 KCAC) outshot the Bees 13-2 in the first quarter and were nearly as dominant, finishing with a 12-4 edge in shots, in the third. Saint Mary scored the first five goals of the third to rebuild an 11-4 lead. Myles Leyden scored in the third and despite fourth-quarter goals from Sam Kerr, Parker and Morgan, St. Ambrose never recovered.

Along with his two goals, Parker also picked up an assist in the loss.

Adam Kasper was charged with the loss while sharing time in goal with Andrew Lis and Johnny Moran.

SAU will hit the road next Saturday to visit No. 7 Benedictine (Kan.).