Despite having breezed through September with just one loss, the Brandeis women's volleyball team (20-3) knew that last month was just the preseason. If the Judges hoped to be successful in October, when the difficulty of their schedule increased, they knew they would have to perfect their offense and toughen their defense. While the Judges initially had some difficulty with the increased intensity of their schedule, losing games to Emory University in the third stage of the UAA Round-Robin on Oct. 4 and to MIT on Oct. 9, they rebounded to win the Eastern Connecticut State Invitational this past weekend.

Brandeis swept through the Crabtree Classic at Eastern Connecticut State, beating Endicott College on Friday for the second time this season, this time by a score of 3-0, as well as Lasell College (also by a 3-0 margin).

The Judges defeated Endicott 3-1 on Sept. 13, but the individual games in this most recent match were even tighter as Brandeis won 30-26, 30-26, 30-18. Co-Captain Marni Kutok '04 led the way on offense and defense with 12 kills and 13 digs, while Shannon Eagan '05 had an excellent all-around game with 10 digs and 21 assists.

In their second game on Friday, Brandeis brushed aside Lasell College with an easy 3-0 win: 30-6, 30-23, 30-12. Dominique Dupont-Dubois '07 made her NCAA debut in this match and, showing no signs of intimidation, tied for the team-high of eight kills. Tiffany Wos '06 also had a solid match, leading the Judges with 11 digs.

On Saturday, Brandeis continued to roll through the tournament, knocking off Wheaton College 3-1 and defeating Endicott for the second time this weekend with a 3-0 semi-final win. Then they downed host Eastern Connecticut State, 3-1 to capture the tournament win.

In their 30-29, 30-22, 25-30, 30-20 win over Wheaton, the Judges had their closest match of the tournament. But Brandeis is 9-0 in four-game matches, so it seems the Judges have little to fear in such situations. Kutok again led the way on offense with 14 kills. She was aided superbly by Becca Segal '05, who added 13 kills of her own. Jenna Polinsky '06 also chipped in a solid effort with six kills and 10 digs.

Against Endicott, a team which the Judges must feel they know almost as well as themselves, Brandeis had an easy 30-22, 30-11, 30-22 victory. Kutok picked up another 11 kills as well as an outstanding 17 kills to lead the way for Brandeis. Co-captain Isabel de Koninck '04 added 14 clutch digs.

In the finals against Eastern Connecticut, Brandeis battled back from a first game loss to take the match 30-32, 30-21, 30-20, 30-10. With the title on the line, Brandeis was able to rise to the occasion, playing progressively better as the match drew to a close.

"They gave us a tough time in the first game," Kutok said. "They had a big block up against our hitters, and it took time for us to adjust. But once we adjusted we took the next three in a row."

Jen Lobban '05 had her best match of the tournament, racking up 14 kills and 11 digs as did Kutok, who had 17 kills and 13 kills. The Brandeis defense was especially strong in the final as Wos and Polinsky each added another 17 digs while Eagan chipped in with 13.

"This weekend was big for us," Kutok added. "We knew going into the tournament that if we played like we have been the whole season that we would win the tournament, and that is exactly what happened."

The Judges earned several honors this weekend for, in addition to the second tournament win of the season, Kutok was named tournament MVP and Lobban was named to the prestigious All-Tournament team.

This win for the Judges was impressive because not only did they dominate every team they faced this weekend, but they also did so after suffering back-to-back losses against Emory University and MIT, two strong teams, just a few days earlier.

At MIT (17-3) on Thursday, the Judges fell 3-0, 30-18, 30-24, 30-18. The match against a primed Engineer squad proved to be one of great disappointment for the Judges not merely because they lost, but also because they did not play up to their potential.

"The MIT match was extremely disappointing for us because MIT is absolutely a beatable team," de Koninck said. "But we just didn't get up to play the match at the level necessary to win."

The third game was particularly disheartening for the Judges, as they led 15-2 before MIT went on a 28-3 run to close out the match. There were some highlights, however, as Kutok turned in another impressive performance with eight kills and 22 digs. Shannon Eagan also had 22 assists.

At the UAA Round-Robin in St. Louis on Oct. 3-4, the Judges got their first taste of conference play and the high level of competition that comes with it. Brandeis had been anxious to face some more demanding teams, and the Judges showed they were ready to rise to the challenge.

The Judges drew the University of Chicago (5-19) to kick off their UAA bracket. Brandeis easily disposed of the Maroons 3-1, 30-24, 25-30, 30-23, 30-25. Kutok again led Brandeis with 18 kills and tied for the team-high with 17 digs along with Wos, while Lobban added 16 digs.

In their second match of the round-robin, the Judges had another easy victory, this time over Case Western (8-12) 3-1, 30-14, 19-30, 30-25, 30-19. Segal had an incredible 20 blocks, andLobban had a solid all-around performance with eight kills, 15 digs, five blocks, and two service aces. Eagan recorded 39 assists, 12 digs and two aces.

In their final match of the round-robin, the Judges faced their toughest opponent of the season to date in the eleventh-ranked Emory Eagles (20-7). Brandeis started out very well, losing the first game by a narrow 32-30 margin. While the next two sets were not as close (30-19, 30-22), the Judges were very pleased despite the 3-0 loss.

"We played amazingly against Emory," Segal said. "That was a big confidence booster because we were playing against their starters. Now we know how well can play when we are all playing on at the top of our game."

The Judges' difficult October schedules continues this weekend with another UAA Round-Robin, this time at the University of Rochester. There they will face both Washington University (20-3) and New York University (20-0). Both of those teams are also ranked nationally. In order to win, Brandeis must continue to make use of all of its strengths.

According to de Koninck, the team has been fundamentally sound throughout the long season. "We've been serving aggressively and blocking extremely well," she said.

But the team, added the veteran captain, "needs to work on our passing so that we can run the most aggressive and balanced offense possible."

Regardless of any small improvements that need to be made, Brandeis has an intangible which is perhaps its most decisive variable and key to success.

"We are still playing like a team," which is our biggest asset this season," Lobban said. "We are all picking up our game when we need to, and when one person is having a bad day, we are filling in. Above all, we are having a lot of fun playing together as a team.