The University Athletic Association conference play opened up this past weekend with the Brandeis Judges traveling to Case Western Reserve University in Cleveland, Ohio. The men’s soccer team was unable to find any offensive ground when they went down a man early in the game after a red card in the 20th minute. They entered the game with a record of 4-2-2 overall, 0-0 in the conference. The six-match win streak by the Judges women’s soccer team was finally broken in a close game with the Spartans after a late game-winner. The Judges entered the match 6-2-1 overall, 0-0 conference play. 

Men’s Soccer

Judges 0, Spartans 4

As a result of playing with 10 men for the majority of the game, there were few offensive chances on the Judges’ part in their game against the Spartans. The extra man on the Spartan side overwhelmed the Judges’ defense, and they were unable to find the back of the net, with only one shot on goal against CWRU. 

The Spartans had their first goal from a one-time shot by Adrian Harkness in the 19th minute. Only a minute later, Brandeis lost a player for the rest of the match when Nick Dunstan-Maiese ’25 received his second yellow of the game. This opened up the match for an offensive push from the Spartans, and they scored again in the 26th minute off a long shot that had an awkward bounce, going past the hands of goalie Aiden Guthro ’23. 

The second half was dominated by the Spartans, and they secured their win with two more goals in the 62nd and 73rd minutes. The Spartans held the advantage in shots over the Judges, putting the shot count at 18-4. The Judges will look to recover against MIT on home turf on Wednesday, Oct. 5, at 7:30 p.m. before playing Carnegie Mellon in the Homecoming and UAA home opener match on Saturday, Oct. 8, at 11 a.m. 

Women’s Soccer

Judges 1, Spartans 2

Entering against the undefeated Spartans, the Judges headed into a challenging game in their first UAA conference game. There was even play throughout the game, but the Judges were unable to hold off the Spartan attack. Brandeis held the advantage for the first half but CWRU pushed back in the second. 

The first half remained scoreless with the Judges out-shooting CWRU 5-3. The Spartans were the first to score in the second half when they capitalized on a corner kick. In the 60th minute, a service that was headed in the box found the back of the net with a shot by Spartan Carolyn Koutures. However, the Judges roared back in the 79th minute when a long ball found the feet of Juliette Carreiro ’23. Caroline Swan ’23 found Carreiro at the top of the 18-yard box who beat the Spartan goalie with a chip shot. 

However, the Spartans were able to put a ball past the Judges off a free kick in the 83rd minute. A foul was called just outside of the 18-yard box, with Spartan player Aniya Hartzler stepping up to the ball. She was able to slide it past defenders to the near post, and Judges goalie Hannah Bassan ’25 was unable to get a hand on it as she dove. The Spartans out-shot the Judges in the second half 8-4 and finished the match 11-9 in shots against Brandeis. They were also able to capitalize on the corners as their first goal came off a corner kick, and CWRU led 7-4 over the Judges in corners. The Judges will look to return to their winning streak when they play Carnegie Mellon for their UAA home opener and Homecoming match this Saturday, Oct. 8, at 1:30 p.m. 

—Editor’s note: Editorial Assistant Aiden Guthro ’23 is a captain of the Judges men’s soccer team and did not contribute to the writing or editing of this article.