On Saturday, the Judges suffered a hearbreaking 61-59 defeat at the hands of University Athletic Association rival New York University at the Gosman Center's Red Auerbach Arena. Their record dropped to 8-3 on the year (1-2 in UAA competition). Down 14-3 five minutes into the game, the Judges mounted an impressive 17-0 run to take a 20-14 lead midway through the half. During that run, Brandeis was led by the dangerous inside-outside combination of Lisa Pritzlaff '05 and Danielle Fitzpatrick '04, who combined for 29 points on the afternoon. NYU kept the score close heading into the half behind the three-point marksmanship of their leading scorer Lauren D'Ambrosio, who averages 13.1 points per game.

After a see-saw first half, the game was tied at 28 at the break.

NYU came out blistering in the second half, scoring 10 of the first 12 points. Down by eight, the Judges inched closer as Pritzlaff drained two treys and a pair of free-throws to even the score at 38.

On an ensuing posession, Judges forward Christine Clancy '06 went down with a twisted left ankle. Fortunately for Brandeis, the Violets were unable to take advantage of just four Brandeis defenders, as NYU's D'Ambrosio was whistled for a traveling violation.

Down the stretch, Brandeis and NYU traded hoops. With one minute left and Brandeis down by three, Judges point guard Amada De Martino '06 connected from long range to tie the score at 59. To no avail, Brandeis Head Coach Carol Simon pleaded for a foul on the shot attempt, lacing into the referee as the Judges sprinted back into their defensive scheme.

NYU then made the defensive stance of the game, as Violet Kate Higier stole a cross-court pass and was fouled. She hit two free-throws to put NYU up by two with ten seconds on the clock.

With the Judges unable to get a clean look at the hoop, Simon called for time with just three seconds remaining. Jayne Wise's subsequent three-point attempt came up short at the buzzer, and the Judges dropped a nailbiter.

While Clancy and her teammates would have savored a victory over NYU, the Brandeis forward knows the Lady Judges are primed for success. "We were disappointed in the loss, but we played hard and executed well against a very rough, aggressive and talented team. We can't wait to play them at their place," she said.

"We know that we can beat NYU," Clancy added, "and had we shot a little better in the first half I think we would have come out with a win, but we still played a good game. We have a very talented team. We are not only hoping for a playoff bid, we are expecting one."

On Wednesday, the Judges pummeled the Massachusetts Institute of Technology by 20. Pritzlaff, Fitzpatrick, and Audra Lissell '04 led visiting Brandeis, combining for an impressive 46 points on the evening.

MIT has struggled all season long, compiling a record of 5-7 that includes losses to Suffolk and Salve Regina universities.

The Judges travel to Medford tonight where they will go up against the 9-2 Tufts University Jumbos. Tufts, which recently had their seven-game winning streak snapped by Wesleyan University, recenlty beat the University of New England, Johnson & Wales, and Connecticut College by a combined 86 points.

The Jumbos are led by the duo of Jessica Powers (Massapequa, N.Y.) and Allison Love (Duxbury, Mass.), who average 14.5 and 10.2 points per game, respectively.