Winning as the underdog is hard to do. But the Brandeis women's volleyball team did just that last weekend as they headed to South Hadley, Mass. for the Hall of Fame Invitational to take on some of the toughest teams in the region. Trying to rebound from a tough loss to local foe Tufts, the Judges looked to take on a handful of regionally ranked teams.

The Judges ended their 2-2 weekend on a high note as they swept regionally ranked Wellesley College for their second win of the weekend on Saturday. The team beat the Blue in three close games, winning 30-27, 30-25 and 30-26. The match marked the first time the Judges have beaten Wellesley in 10 years. Jenna Polinsky '06 paced the team on both sides of the ball with 20 digs and 12 kills while Becca Segal '05 and Jenny Sandler '08 followed closely with eight kills and 13 digs, respectively.

"We swept the no. 8 team in the region," Coach Michelle Kim said. "I think it was a pretty good win for us."

"We were positive about the whole match," Katie Wrynn '08 said. "We fought from beginning to end."

Before their big win over Wellesley, the Judges took on Smith College, a team the Judges had previously fallen to earlier in the season. Although the team lost 3-1, they showed improvement, as the Pioneers had swept the Judges in their earlier bout. Each game against the Pioneers was extraordinarily close as three of the four games were two-point games. The Judges took the first game of the match by a close score of 30-28, but Smith recovered to win the second game by the same score of 30-28. The Pioneers won the third and fourth games 30-23 and 30-28 to finish out the match. Polinsky again led the team offensively with 30 kills and defensively with 30 digs.

"It was a tight game with Smith," Kim said. "We played well, we just came up a little bit short."

On their first day of competition, the Judges ended on a losing note, but came away with a 1-1 record for the day. In their final match of the day on Friday, the Judges took on Amherst College. Both Segal and Polinksy paced the offense for the Judges, registering eight kills a piece. Polinsky also led the team on the defensive side with 11 digs while Sandler finished the match with 10 digs.

The Judges opened up their first day of competition with a remarkable win over regionally ranked powerhouse Middlebury College beating the Panthers in four close games. Though the Judges dropped the first game 30-25, they outplayed their opponents and went on the win the remaining three games, 30-23, 30-25 and 30-27.

The match against the Panthers saw a balanced and powerful attack. Three players each recorded double figures in kills, as Lobban led the team with 17 kills, while Segal and Polinsky added 15 and 12 kills respectively. The win over Middlebury also saw the return of captain Shannon Eagan '05, who was sidelined last weekend with a knee injury. Eagan returned in familiar style recording 51 assists for her third highest assist total this season.

"We passed very well against Middlebury," Kim said.

"We started out the game with a lot of confidence and we didn't let down," Shannon Trees '08 said.

Before their tournament weekend, the Judges traveled to Medford to take on the rival Tufts University Jumbos, another regionally ranked opponent. The Judges ultimately fell to the Jumbos in three close games, 30-21, 30-21 and 30-27.

"Our passing was down and we didn't really block them," Kim said. "I thought we could have played them tougher."

"We just let them get away with many points without siding out and couldn't seem to bring the momentum to our side," Lobban said.

The team looks like they are getting back on track as the get ready to host the Judges Classic tournament at home this weekend. One cause of concern for the Judges is inuries. Although Eagan has recovered, starting libero Trees played for only a portion of one match throughout the weekend due to a knee injury. Ashley Powers '08 was filling in for Eagan but also got hurt in the matches this weekend.

Though the team has suffered some injuries this season, Kim believes that this is only natural of a team with such a tough schedule.

"It's the end of the season and I think our player's bodies are definitely taking a toll this season," Kim said.

Kim hopes to go a bit lighter this week in an effort to rest her players for the big games to come. Kim knows that she plays a tough schedule but has faith in her players that they will continue to play hard and that their record going into the postseason will be a winning one.

"Our record doesn't show it, but our schedule's been very tough and I know we are better than a lot of teams," Kim said.

Kim and the Judges hope to do exactly that when they defend their home court against some tough New England competition. Kim and Lobban are both confident about their teams chances.

"I hope to do very well this weekend," Kim said. "I think we can do very well this weekend at home.