Brandeis women’s soccer was awarded the number two seed in the Eastern Conference Athletic Championships and they made certain that their placement was well earned after thoroughly dominating seventh seeded St. Joseph’s 4-0 in front of 75 souls who braved the cold weather.
Brandeis outshot St. Joseph’s 38-6 in the game, but it was St. Josephs that had the early momentum, taking three of the first four shots of the game, one requiring Hillary Rosenzweig ’10 to knock aside. The Blue Jays would not get another shot in the half. It was not until 40 minutes into the game that rookie Francesca Shin ’12 directed her shot across the goal mouth into the far post for her first career collegiate goal. Melissa Gorenkoff’s ’10 was credited with the assist on the play. Gorenkoff would find the back of the net herself four minutes later, delivering a 25 yarder that proved too much for opposing keeper Cait Witham to stop giving the Judges a 2-0 halftime lead. Brandeis’s rookies closed out the scoring as Kaitlin Oldfield ’12 scored off her own rebound in the 59th minute and in the 80th minute found fellow rookie Ali Theodore ’12 to finish the game 4-0. St. Joseph’s never mounted a serious comeback, perpetually forced to defend their turf as the Judges had 20 shots in the second half alone.
Hillary Rosenzweig had 4 saves on the day and help from Allison Maresca ’12 who cleared a rebound from the line at the 5th minute, preserving the shut out. Cait Witham gave a valiant effort for the Blue Jays, making 15 saves including several acrobatic ones that kept the margin from being completely humiliating. Brandeis also had eight corner kicks on the night.
The Judges road for their second straight ECAC banner continues Saturday, November 15 as they host sixth seeded Emmanuel College. Emmanuel upset third seeded Fitchburg State thanks to three unanswered goals in the second half to earn the 3-2 victory.
A marvelous performance that reflects the continued maturation of the rookies and young talent which is an encouraging sign that perhaps next year, this team will be a team to watch not only in the UAA but in Division III women’s soccer.
