With the regular season nearing its end, the women’s soccer team pushes on. The team has one game left in the season. Currently, the team has an overall score of 12–3. With the end of the season nearing, the Judges have had  an amazing season. The first game of this week was scheduled for Tuesday Oct. 23, against Simmons College. However, the game was canceled. 


WashU 1, Judges 0

The following Friday, the Judges went head-to-head with Washington University in St. Louis. The first half of the game was close between the Judges and the Bears. The game started off with a corner kick by Sasha Sunday ’19 and fouls on both Brandeis and WashU. Brandeis’s only goal of the day was in the 24th minute of play by Daria Bakhtiari ’21. Sierra Dana ’20 made one save in the first half. 

In the second half, the Bears pushed back. 47 seconds into the half, WashU had already made a corner kick followed by a shot that was saved by goalie Dana. This was followed by both teams conceding two fouls each. Within the last 53 seconds of the game, WashU made their first goal. Dana finished the game with six saves, just short of her season record of seven saves. 

Following this game, the Judges' record fell to 11–3, while WashU improved to 15–0. Brandeis ended the game with one fewer fouls than WashU. Brandeis and WashU won three and seven corner kicks, respectively. Brandeis had seven total saves during the game, while their opponent had only one.


UChicago 0, Judges 1  

On Sunday Oct. 29, the Judges came on strong against the University of Chicago. Dana was Brandeis’ goalie at the start of the game. By the sixth minute, Dana had already made her first save of the day. The first half of the game was evenly played by both teams. 

This trend persisted into the second half, until Lauren Mastandrea ’22 shot the ball towards Sam Volpe ’19 who charged the ball into the goal, for her third goal of the season. Dana made three saves in the last six minutes of the game.Within the first two minutes of the second half, Brandeis had attempted a shot that was saved by an opposing player. This was followed by a shot by the Judges, and two corner kicks, one by Brandeis and the other UChicago. The game ended with a shot by UChicago and a save by Dana. 

UChicago outshot Brandeis during this game, 18–15, but the Judges put 10 of their shots on goal, compared to just six for their opponents. In addition, the Judges had six saves during the game, three fewer than UChicago. Since 2009, Brandeis has not defeated University of Chicago. They haven't won in the Windy City since 2008. Following this game, the teams score improved to 12–3. 

The Judges are currently 4–2 in the conference. With a shot percentage of 10.1 percent, the women have an average of 2.00 goals per game and 19.9 shots per game. The women's team is ranked #13 in Division III by the United Soccer Coaches and #19 by D3soccer.com. They have had 15 games this season, and have one more on the calendar. 

The next game for the Judges is their final game of the season, on Saturday Nov. 3 at New York University. This game has the potential to affect the Judges' playoff positioning. As it currently stands, the team is tied for third in the UAA, after Washington University in St. Louis and New York University. The Judges are tied with the University of Chicago. If the team wins their final game, it should vault them to second place in the UAA tournament, but if they lose, it could be detrimental, dropping them all the way to fourth at best.  The team has remained competitive in a conference that is host to some of the top teams in the nation. With a perfect 6-0 divisional record, Washington University have already clinched the UAA championship and are currently ranked as the number one team in the nation by the United Soccer coaches and by D3soccer.com. If the Judges can advance in this crowded conference, it will only further the team's confidence from here on out.