It was a week of frustration and elation for the No. 6 men’s soccer team, as disappointment came in the form of a 0-0 draw against rival Massachusetts Institute of Technology on Tuesday. 

However, the squad finished the week strong with an exciting 2-1 victory over conference foe Case Western Reserve University. 

Despite the Tuesday draw, the Judges used this past week to continue building momentum in what has thus far been a wildly successful season. 

No. 6 Judges 2 No. 16 Case Western 1

On Sunday, the Judges hit the road for a conference matchup with Case Western Reserve. Brandeis opened the scoring in the 33rd minute, when forward Josh Berg ’17 took advantage of a well-placed corner from midfielder Josh Ocel ’17 to net the game’s first goal. After Case Western tied things up at 1-1 in the 56th minute, Brandeis took the lead for good when forward Chris Bradley ’16 used another beautiful corner set-up from Ocel, heading it home for the first game-winner of his career. 

With Ocel’s second assist of the day, he is now tied for the UAA assists lead. 

Bradley remarked on his mindset following the crucial goal, saying “It’s always great to get a goal and leave your mark on the game. Netting a decisive goal was a good feeling. I hadn't scored in a while, so it was really important to end that drought and get things going again. More importantly, this game was a crucial one for us, and it had a great deal of significance relative to our goal of winning the conference.”

At a closer glance, the Judges’ 14 shots (eight on goal), compared to Case Western’s nine shots (five on goal) proved pivotal in the squad’s tough victory. 

The win brought the Judges to an impressive 10-1-1 overall and 2-0-0 in UAA play. 

For Case Western, the loss dropped them to 9-2-1 overall and 1-1-0 in UAA play. 

No. 6 Judges 0 MIT 0 (2 OT)

On Tuesday, the Judges saw their match with rival MIT end in a frustrating 0-0 draw. 

The squad was unable to capitalize on an advantage in shots (16-14), shots on goal (6-4) and corner kicks (6-4). 

Bradley spoke about the frustrating tie: “The draw against MIT was disappointing. I felt the general read of the team was that we let ourselves down. The MIT game provided us with quality scoring opportunities but it was just a night that lacked a little sharpness in the final third.”

The Judges’ best scoring opportunity came in the 98th minute, when midfielder Christian Hernandez ’18 blasted a strike that sailed just wide of the left goalpost. 

For MIT, their best scoring opportunity came in the 79th minute, when midfielder senior Austin Freel’s  30-yard rocket grazed the crossbar before deflecting out-of-bounds. Goalkeeper Ben Woodhouse ’18 had four saves on the day. 

The Judges’ inability to score against MIT reflects a bigger problem for the team this season, as their offensive struggles have proven increasingly troublesome, necessitating dramatic finishes more often than not. Unfortunately, the Judges had no drama in store on Tuesday evening and may soon find that without a consistent and balanced offensive attack, their season could — despite the mounting hype — end in bitter disappointment. 

The draw brought the Judges to 9-1-1 overall and 6-0-2 in overtime matches in the last two seasons.  

Despite their offensive shortcomings, the Judges’ relatively impressive overall play and decisively impressive record has them ranked No. 3 overall by D3soccer.com and No. 6 by the NSCAA for men’s Division III soccer.

Looking ahead, the Judges have a non-conference match against Massachusetts Maritime Academy tonight at 7:00 p.m. 

They then take on the University of Chicago on Friday at 6:30 p.m. and No. 17 Washington University in St. Louis Sunday at 11:00 a.m. as part of a UAA homecoming weekend. 

Bradley is optimistic looking ahead for the rest of the season. 

He commented, “I think we have definitely started to find our groove, and it’s great to see production from six different forwards rather than just three.” The Judges will continue to require an offensive surge from their forwards in addition to tough defense.