Brandeis was shut out twice this week by Carnegie Mellon University and Emory University, 1-0 and 7-0, respectively, dropping them to 6-6-1 on the season. The team, presently on a four game losing streak, is 0-3-1 in the UAA and currently in seventh place.
The Judges continued their conference schedule against Emory, ranked No. 11 in NCAA division III. Brandeis managed only six shots against a stifling Eagles defense. Emory was able to score seven goals on only 16 shots. The scoring began in the sixth minute on a goal by midfielder Patrick Carver 09. Midfielder Karl Dix 06 had a six-point day, contributing an assist on the first goal;
with two assists in the game, Dix broke the UAA record for career assists. The record-breaking assist came on the Eagles second goal of the game. Dix now has 38 career assists. Dix added to his career day with two goals scored 10 minutes apart in the second half. Reserve forward Alex Grigalunas 07 also had two goals in the win. With the shutout, Emory has now shut out ten opponents this season.
[Emory] just killed us. It was embarrassing. We played very poorly Its one of the worst losses that Ive ever experienced as a coach at Brandeis I think we embarrassed the University and the soccer tradition of Brandeis, Coach Coven said.
Earlier that week Brandeis faced the tough Carnegie Mellon team. The game was a stalemate until late in the second half when Tartans midfielder Daniel Mastalski 06 scored off a free kick to give them a 1-0 lead. The Tartans improved to 8-1-1 after the win. The goal came with only 17:03 remaining in the game. Forward Andrew Park 06 collided with Brandeis goalie Matt Kaplan 06 outside of the penalty box, with Kaplan called for the foul. This led to Mastalskis second score of the year.
The Tartans had a great scoring opportunity in the 16th minute of the first half, when defender Matt Wilkinsons shot hit the cross bar and bounced right into Kaplans arms. Brandeis chance came right before halftime when the ball was loose in the Carnegie Mellon penalty box. David Weinstein 08 got a shot off, but freshman goalie Matthew Bazin exploded to the ball right after it left Weinsteins foot.
The two games created a tough travel schedule. The Judges were forced to go to Pittsburgh and then to Atlanta. Normally the team flies out Thursday, but because of Yom Kippur, the team had to fly out Friday morning.
Coven talked about the Friday-Sunday road schedule as being very tough on the Brandeis team. Recently at the annual UAA coaches meeting, Coven suggested playing a game every Saturday or Sunday at a consistent time to make the game more fan friendly. The coaches unanimously were in favor of Covens plan;
however, the athletic directors tabled the idea for an indefinite time period. Soccers not the type of game where you should be playing two games in three days, Coven said.
The Judges move into the final part of the schedule starting with Wednesdays game. If Brandeis wins the majority of the remaining games, the team still has a chance to make the ECAC tournament. I expect to win [our final] four gamesWeve got some talentand were going to work hard and win these games, Coven said.
