The men’s soccer team continued to struggle offensively this past week, resulting in a series of relatively disappointing finishes. Though the Judges managed to pull out one victory on the week, their inability to score cost them in their three other contests. The squad has slipped significantly in national polls, and it remains to be seen whether or not they can turn things around in time for an National Collegiate Athletic Association tournament berth. 

Judges 0, Case Western 0

The Judges rounded out last week’s action with a matchup against familiar foe Case Western Reserve University on Saturday. Though the Judges were hoping to get their offense in order against the Spartans, they again failed to muster a goal in yet another double overtime match. 

In a game with little excitement, the only thrilling moments came in the 24th minute of regulation, when the Spartans had two consecutive headers on goal. Fortunately for the Judges, both attempts hit the crossbar and bounced back into play. Goalie Ben Woodhouse ’18 finished the game with four stops. Spartans sophomore keeper Calvin Boyle also finished the contest with four stops, including a crucial save on a double-overtime on-goal attempt from Judges' midfielder Evan Jastremski ’17. By game’s end, Case had attempted 14 goals to Brandeis’ 10, while the Judges had attempted seven corners to Case’s three.

The tie brings the Judges to 4-3-3 on the season. The draw brings Case to 4-6-1 on the year. 

Judges 2, MIT 1

The squad was able to breathe a sigh of relief on Wednesday, as a narrow 2-1 victory over the Massachusetts Institute of Technology ended one of their worst stretches in recent memory. The win ended a streak that featured nine overtimes and zero Brandeis goals. 

The Judges jumped out to a quick lead in the 6th minute when forward Andrew Allen ’19 set fellow forward Jastremski up with a gorgeous cross that yielded the first goal of the match. The Judges’ lead did not last long, however, as MIT got on the board in the 14th minute when senior forward Kareem Itani netted a lengthy goal off of a Brandeis deflection.

Both squads battled back-and-forth until the last minute, when Judges midfielder Patrick Flahive ’18 took advantage of a midfielder Christian Hernandez ’18 set-up, netting a 20-yard rocket to give the Judges a decisive lead. By the end of the night, each team had registered fifteen shots and five corner kicks, but it was the Judges who were able to turn one more of those attempts into a clinching goal. 

Judges 1, Carnegie Mellon 1

To no surprise, the Judges found themselves in yet another double overtime battle, squaring off in a contested match against Carnegie Mellon University. As has been the theme all season, the Judges offensive struggles impeded them from claiming victory over the Tartans. 

Brandeis jumped out to a quick lead in the 17th minute when midfielder Josh Ocel ’17 netted a goal off of his own penalty-kick rebound. The goal was Ocel’s fourth of the season. The game remained 1-0 until the 76th minute, when Woodhouse was unable to hang on to his ostensible save of sophomore forward Anthony Gulli’s free kick, with the ball barely slipping through his hands. 

Neither team found the back of the net in either of the overtime periods. The draw brought the Judges to 3-3-2 on the season. 

Looking ahead, the Judges face  Massachusetts Maritime Academy on Monday and travel to the University of Chicago on Friday.