The Bees went cold from beyond the three-point line in the 65-50 conference loss to the Titans in Lee Lohman Arena this afternoon. SAU only netted three 3-pointers on 18 total attempts. These shooting faults allowed IUSB to extend their lead, but St. Ambrose stayed close as they shot 75% from the charity stripe (15-20).

Caitlyn Thole opened up the scoring for SAU close to a minute and a half into the opening quarter. Then, it was Abby Wolter and Thole who scored the next two buckets for St. Ambrose.

Mary Gruber's free throw put the Bees ahead at 9-7 at the 5:25 mark. The Titans did not trail for long as they sank a 3-pointer and a layup to regain the lead at 16-13. 

Olivia Harter's free throws made it a one-point game until IUSB scored just before the end of the quarter. The Bees would never get closer than that one point deficit the rest of the way.

SAU did have an answer for the first two buckets the Titans scored, but a three-point shot from IUSB forced the Bees into a timeout. 

After the Bees and Titans exchanged 3-pointers, South Bend scored on three consecutive trips down the floor to extend their lead to 12. 

The Bees got within eight scores just before the halftime break, but they could never close the gap.

Out of the break, the Titans dominated from the field before Wolter knocked down two free throws and a jumper about halfway through the third quarter. This closed the gap to 11, but South Bend scored during critical moments.

An IUSB 3-pointer forced a Bee timeout at the 2:44 mark. SAU only scored once more in the quarter off a Wolter field goal and held the Titans scoreless the rest of the period.

Wolter helped the Bees stick around after she caught fire from beyond the arc. Wolter knocked down two back-to-back 3-pointers for the Bees. 

After, the Bees offense stalled and the Titans scored on three possessions before Allie Govert broke the scoring silence for SAU.

Payton Calouette drove in for a layup to make the game 65-50 in favor of South Bend. Neither team scored during the remaining two and a half minutes, so the Bees suffered the loss which drops them to 8-15 overall and 6-10 in conference play.

The Bees won the rebounding battle as they secured 34 rebounds to the Titans 29. SAU suffered from 20 turnovers in the loss.

Wolter scored a team-high 21 points while Thole chipped in 10 scores. Harter and Govert netted seven and five, respectively. 

Thole was just short of a double-double as she secured nine rebounds. Wolter grabbed eight as Govert pulled down six boards. Calouette secured four boards.

Thole led the team in assists with four as Wolter added three. Thole also added two blocks. 

After the Bees short home stretch, St. Ambrose will now hit the road. This week, the Bees play Viterbo in La Crosse, Wis. Tip off is set for 5:30 p.m. on Wed. at R.W. Beggs Sr. Gymnasium.