St. Ambrose delivered a statement win on Wednesday night, rallying late to defeat No. 6 William Penn 10-9 in a tightly contested conference matchup.

The Bees struck first as Ryan Swanson opened the scoring, but William Penn responded with four of the next five goals to take a 4-3 lead after the first quarter. Cameron Washington and Swanson each found the net in the opening period, keeping St. Ambrose within striking distance despite the early surge from the Statesmen. In the second quarter, Ethan Nydegger scored to cut the deficit to 5-4, but William Penn answered late in the period to carry a 6-4 lead into halftime.

William Penn extended its lead to 8-4 early in the third quarter, putting the Bees in a four-goal hole. St. Ambrose began to respond midway through the period, sparked by an extra-man goal from Ayden Fraelle off a feed from Swanson. Just before the end of the quarter, Swanson struck again—this time assisted by Washington—to cut the deficit to 8-6 heading into the final frame.

The Bees took control in the fourth quarter with a dominant stretch of play. Garrett Lee opened the scoring in the period with an unassisted goal to make it 8-7. Moments later, St. Ambrose capitalized on another extra-man opportunity as Zach Priami scored off a pass from Swanson to tie the game at 8-8. The momentum continued as Fraelle finished another feed from Swanson to give the Bees a 9-8 lead—their first since the opening quarter. After William Penn tied the game at 9-9, Priami delivered the game-winner with just over three minutes remaining, finishing an assist from Nick Toman to secure the 10-9 victory.

Individual Highlights

• Ryan Swanson: 3 goals, 3 assists, played a role in six of 10 goals
• Zach Priami: 2 goals, including the game-winner
• Ayden Fraelle: 2 goals, including key extra-man conversion
• Cameron Washington: 1 goal, 2 assists, steady offensive presence
• Ethan Nydegger & Garrett Lee: each added a goal

At the faceoff X, Mason Shackelford was a difference-maker, going 15-of-20 to help St. Ambrose control possession, especially during the comeback.

In goal, Carter Gras recorded 14 saves, anchoring the Bees through multiple William Penn scoring runs.

The Bees begin conference tournament play on Saturday, April 25^th as they host William Woods at 11 a.m.