St. Ambrose opened its 2025 season by earning a big 8-5 win at No. 12 Kansas Wesleyan Thursday afternoon. That came after a tight 5-3 loss to Hastings.

Garrett Vincent and Brad Niedzwiedz combined for the win over the Coyotes.

Vincent went five innings, allowing just three hits to earn the win. Niedzwiedz picked up the save by allowing three hits and one earned run over the final four frames. The two combined for nine strikeouts.

They received plenty of offensive support. The Bees pounded out 12 hits, three coming off the bat of Joey Fitzgerald Jr. Jeremy Conforti and Daniel Laughery had two hits apiece.

Trailing 1-0, SAU took the lead in the fifth. Jake Pauley and Fitzgerald started the inning with back-to-back hits before advancing a base on a sacrifice bunt from Brandon Matias. Brandon Roth drew a walk to load the bases. Two wild pitches allowed both Pauley and Fitzgerald to score before Conforti's infield hit plated Roth for a 3-1 lead.

After Kansas Wesleyan tied the game at 3-3 in the bottom of the inning, St. Ambrose regained the lead for good in the sixth. Sam Wampler started things with a double and pinch runner Bryce Vorwald came around to score when Caden Thode reached on a throwing error. Fitzgerald had an RBI single and Conforti doubled in a pair to push the lead to 7-3.

Quinn Flanagan doubled in Kevin Niedzwiedz with an insurance run in the ninth after the Coyotes had closed to within 7-5.

In the season opener, the Bee bats were limited to just four hits. Roth collected two of them while Flanagan and Thode each had one.

A four-run fifth inning for Hastings proved to be the difference. Thode's two-run single in the bottom of the fifth cut the deficit in half.

The Broncos added a run in the top of the ninth. The Bees got that back as Pauley scored on an error, and SAU had the potential tying-run at the plate but Thode fouled out to first to end the game.

Joe Turek took the loss despite striking out seven over six innings. He was charged with four runs. Justin Lane surrendered one just one run over the final three innings.

SAU returns to action Friday starting with a rematch against Kansas Wesleyan at noon. The Bees will then face Clarke at 3:30.