The Brandeis women’s soccer team took down Nazareth College at home on Sunday in a 3-1 victory. They moved up to a 2-0 record, but could not get the win on Wednesday’s game against Babson College to maintain their undefeated streak. Babson won the game in a 1-0 shutout.
In Saturday’s match against the Nazareth Golden Flyers, the Judges wasted no time getting on the board. In the fifth minute of play Mimi Theodore ’12 got the ball to Tiffany Pacheco ’11 who drove the ball under Nazareth’s diving keeper, Hillary Simon ’11, and into the net for her first goal of the season.
Pacheco went on to assist both of Brandeis’ other goals of the game, living up to Coach Dallamora’s promise that Pacheco is a player to keep an eye on this season.
While the Judges dominated most of the first half, Nazareth started to fight back in the last minutes. In the 39th minute of play, they tied the game with a goal by Sarah Baluta ’13, the first of her collegiate career, off an assist by Rachel Piemonte ’11. That would be the only goal the Golden Flyers would get off the Judges.
Brandeis came into the second half with a strong offensive push, resulting in the eventual game-winning goal less than two minutes into the half. Pacheco headed the ball to Ali Theodore ’12 who then put it in the back of the net, giving Brandeis a one-goal lead.
The final scoring took place in the 60th minute of play when Pacheco added her second assist of the game. She crossed the ball to Sofia Vallone ’11 who made a great head shot past Simon, both securing Brandeis’ lead and becoming the first player of the 2009 season to record two goals. The Golden Flyers never got another opportunity to score. Goalkeeper Jaclyn Weinstein ’12 earned the win for the Judges after playing the second half, but never had to make a single save. With the loss, Nazareth fell to 1-2.
Unfortunately for the Judges the next game did not go quite as smoothly as their last. Brandeis fell to the Babson Beavers 1-0 on Wednesday despite a remarkable effort by goalkeeper Hillary Rosenzweig ’10 who had eight saves over the 90 minute game, tying her second-highest career game total and falling just two shy of her career high.
The only goal took place with less than twenty minutes left in the game. Babson’s Patty Plytik ’11 bent a shot just out of reach of Rosenzweig, giving Plytik her fourth goal of the season.
Brandeis missed out on their best scoring opportunity just minutes before on the opposite end of the field when Pacheco ripped a shot from roughly 30 yards out that Beavers’ keeper Sarah Macary ’11 tipped up to the crossbar. Mimi Theodore took the rebound off her head, but Macary was able to catch the shot.
“Babson is on grass and we do not practice on that any more,” said Coach Dallamora. “So the game was slower and we did not rise to the occasion.”
The women will face Springfield this Saturday, Sept. 12, at noon. The last time the Judges played them Brandeis lost in the second overtime, so they will probably be changing up their game plan a bit according to Coach Dallamora. The Judges will play at home again next Tuesday Sept. 15 at 4 p.m against Bridgewater State.
