The Brandeis Judges women’s team qualified for the NCAA Division III Women’s Soccer Tournament after concluding their regular season 11–4–2,  4–3 University Athletic Association. The Judges faced the Farmingdale State Rams, ranked #20, for the first round and the #8 Massachusetts Institute of Technology Engineers for the second. 

Women’s Soccer

First Round: Judges 2, Rams 1

The Judges traveled to MIT’s campus who hosted the first and second rounds of the tournament. Thanks to a comeback in the second half, the Judges were able to defeat the Rams. With the win, the Judges improved to 12–4–2 and the Rams ended their season with a 15–8 record. 

The Rams took the reins in the first half with a goal in the 12th minute. The Rams' forward Julissa Martinez off a through-ball beat first-year goalie Hannah Bassan for the one-on-one goal. Despite Brandeis outshooting the Rams for the rest of the half, they were unable to get a shot on target. 

In the second half, the Judges scored an equalizer in the 72nd minute after offensive pressure ramped up. Sophomore Yasla Ngoma was able to fight off the Rams’ defenders and shoot through the defense into the goal for her 6th goal of the season. In the 83rd minute, Brandeis found their opportunity for the game-winning goal off a free-kick. Junior Caroline Swan curved the ball into the box and found her senior teammate Juliette Carreiro’s head. This marked Carreiro’s seventh goal and her fifth game-winner of the season. The Judges were able to hold off the Rams for the rest of the game and advance to play the  Engineers the next day. 

Second Round: Engineers 2, Judges 0

The Judges had played the Engineers earlier in the season which ended in a brutal 2-2 tie while in a downpour. However, they were unable to come back after two early goals in the first half and edge out MIT. With the loss, the Judges ended their season 12–5–2 and the Engineers to 21–1–1. 

Barely into the game and only 16 seconds in, MIT was awarded a penalty kick when Engineer Meagan Rowlett was brought down. Putting the ball away, it marked an early lead for the Engineers and a tough battle for the Judges. Less than 10 minutes later, the Engineer forward Natalie Barnouw was able to shoot from the top of the 18-yard box and slip one past Bassan. Despite Bassan getting a hand on it, the ball made it into the goal to put the Engineers two ahead. 

Unable to contest, the Engineers held tough and fought off the Judges’ offensive pushes. During the second half, the Judges shot even with the Engineers 8-8 but were unable to find the back of the net. MIT advances to face Carnegie Mellon in the sweet 16 of the tournament. Next season, the Judges will have a strong foundation with no loss of starting backline players or goalkeepers and keep 3 of their 5 top scorers.

Honors

The UAA announced their 2021 All-Association Women’s and Men’s team with Judges’ representation on both sides. On the women’s first team, Senior Juliette Carreiro and junior Caroline Swan were honored. senior Daria Bakhtiaril was honored on the second All-Association team. For the men’s, senior Michael Burch was honored in the second All-Association team.