Saint Xavier opened the fourth quarter with an 8-0 run to defeat St. Ambrose 76-65 in Chicago Wednesday night.

The Bees trailed just 53-51 after Kaitlyn Brunson ended the third quarter with a 3-pointer. But SAU missed its first four shots of the final period as SXU built a 61-61 lead.

Abby Wolter got the Bees on the board and Kashell Daughty followed by splitting two free throws to cut the deficit to 61-54 with more than six minutes remaining. Saint Xavier (16-10, 14-5 CCAC) answered with a 3-pointer and following a St. Ambrose miss, hit a jumper to go in front 66-54. The lead never got under double digits the rest of the way.

The Bees shot just 5-of-14 in the fourth while the Cougars hit 9-of-17 attempts. SXU also claimed a 12-5 rebounding advantage over the final 10 minutes. For the game, the Cougars outrebounded the Bees 45-36, leading to a 20-2 edge in second-chance points. SXU also turned 12 SAU turnovers into 18 points while St. Ambrose scored just five points off nine Saint Xavier turnovers.

Caitlyn Thole recorded another double-double, finishing with 18 points and 10 rebounds. Daughty also scored 18 in the loss.

Abby Wolter had 10 points, nine rebounds and seven assists. Allie Govert scored 10. Brunson, Payton Calouette and Aryelle King each contributed three points.

St. Ambrose (6-18, 6-13 CCAC) will close the regular season at Trinity Christian Saturday.