On Saturday, Oct. 1 the Brandeis women’s soccer team traveled to Carnegie Mellon for the first league game of the season. The Judges came out really strong and took the game 2-0, extending the 11-game winning streak. Brandeis women’s soccer came into the match ranked number 10 in Division III in the NSCAA poll and number 13 in D3Soccer.com with a record of 10-0-1. The first half of the Judges season is the best 11-game start in the 34-year history of the program under head coach Denise Dallamora.
Cidney Moscovitch ’17 played well and intercepted a clearing attempt by the Carnegie Mellon goalkeeper to start the game off with a 1-0 lead in the first minute and half. This is Moscovitch’s fourth goal of the season. Moscovitch initiated the second goal to ensure a win with a hard-driven ball, which was poked out of the goal by Carnegie Mellon’s goalie, but teammate Lea McDaniel was there to finish off the rebound for her team—and University Athletic Association (UAA)—with her 10th goal of the season. Brandeis outshot the Tartans 9-5 with huge saves by Brandeis’ goalie, Alexis Grossman ’17, who made five saves to earn her sixth shutout of the season.
The Judges then took on Lesley University on Tuesday, Oct. 4 at home with a 2-0 finish. Samantha Schwartz ’18 scored both goals of the game, one in minute 19 of play and the second in minute 55 of play to ensure the win. Assisted by Haliana Burhans ’18, Schwartz dribbled through the left of the box and shot a hard-driven ball toward the right of the goal to beat the goalie. In the second half of the game, McDaniel found Schwartz at the corner of the six-yard box where she drilled the ball to the back of the net to earn the 2-0 lead. The two-goal performance was Schwartz’s second of the season and the third of her career, while the game-winning goal was her second this year and the eighth of her college career. Brandeis outshot Lesley 14-3 with 10-1 shots on goal. Grossman made one save to record her 27th career win and 18th career shutout. Now at an 11-0-1 record, this year’s squad has the best 12-game start in school history. This win makes nine shutout wins for the Judges and they intend to beat the standing record of 14 shutout wins set in 2012.
The Brandeis women’s soccer team is now ranked 10th by NSCAA Coaches. The Judges take the field again when they return to the University Athletic Association (UAA) play on Saturday, Oct. 8 at 11 a.m. against Case Western Reserve University as part of Homecoming Weekend. They will then travel to the University of Chicago and and the Washington University in St. Louis to continue UAA play and will return home on Friday, Oct. 28 for a match against Emory at 5 p.m.
