St. Ambrose put up a fight but came up short to CCAC leading Indiana South Bend in the regular season finale on Saturday afternoon. The Bees fell, 70-59, to the Titans inside Lee Lohman Arena.

St. Ambrose stayed in the game for much of the first quarter. Trailing 7-2 early, a Caitlyn Thole layup, followed by a Kaitlyn Brunson steal, and two Abby Wolter free throws, put the Bees within one with 6:49 left in the first. Anna Plumer forced an IU-South Bend timeout after making a layup to make it 14-12 with 3:26 remaining in the quarter. The Titans would find their grove after the timeout, going on a 12-2 run to close out the frame and take a 26-14 lead.

SAU struggled in the second quarter, shooting just 33.3% from the field and missing on both three-point attempts, as Indiana South Bend would take a 45-27 halftime lead.

The Titans would grow their lead to 22 with 1:02 left in the third quarter, but the Bees continuted to fight. Caroline Cool kicked off the fourth quarter with two made free throws, and Brunson followed with a jumper to cut into the IU South Bend lead. A three-pointer by Brunson made it a 16 point game, but the Titans answered with a bucket to take a 68-50 lead with 4:44 left in the game. St. Ambrose closed on a 9-2 run, but it was too little too late as IUSB would take the victory, 70-59.

Plumer led SAU with 14 points (6-6 on FT), while Thole (12 points, 7 rebounds) and Wolter (10 points, 7 rebounds) were the other Bees in double figures. Brunson added seven points and a team-high four assists. Jaynee Prestegaard chipped in six points and grabbed seven boards. Cool, Govert, and Olivia Harter combined for 10 points off the bench.

St. Ambrose will now turn their attention to postseason play. The Bees will face the Tigers of Olivet Nazarene on Wednesday, Feb. 22nd at 5:30 p.m. in Bourbonnais, Ill. ONU won both regular season matchups against SAU.