A 12-0 run early in the game gave St. Ambrose all the cushion it would need in an eventual 83-56 win over Lincoln College Wednesday night in Lee Lohman Arena. The victory moved the Bees to 9-1 overall and 6-1 in the CCAC.

SAU trailed 3-2 in the opening seconds before completely shutting down the Lynx.

After hitting that quick 3-pointer, Lincoln (1-6, 1-4 CCAC) missed its next 10 shots from the field. That, along with a pair of turnovers, let St. Ambrose take control. Shayne Smith, Jaynee Prestegaard and Kylie Wroblewski combined for four baskets in the paint, and Prestegaard closed the run with four free throws as the Bees built a 14-3 lead. The Lynx finally ended a nearly six-minute scoreless stretch with a layup with three minutes left in the opening quarter.

The SAU lead was 20-12 after one period and 28-19 midway through the second. Over the final five minutes of the first half, the Bees would limit the Lynx to 2-of-9 shooting and force two turnovers. That enabled SAU to close the half on a 14-5 spurt behind four points from Smith and three from Wroblewski to open a 42-24 lead at the half.

Lincoln didn't threaten in the second half.

The Bees dominated inside, outscoring the Lynx 56-24 in the paint. Much of that damage came from the starters as the SAU starting unit combined to shoot 26-of-46 from the field. 

Prestegaard led all scorers with 19 points on 7-of-12 shooting. She also pulled down seven rebounds and blocked five shots. Smith (7-of-13) scored 16 points and Wroblewski (5-of-9) added 13. The other two Bee starters, Madeline Prestegaard (8 points on 4-of-5 shooting, 7 rebounds) and Maddy Cash (6 points, 5 assists), combined for 14 points. 

Avari Everts came off the bench to score 10 points. Abby Lundquist and Anna Plumer were credited with four assists apiece.

As a team, St. Ambrose shot nearly 54 percent from the floor. 

The Bees will visit Trinity International Saturday.