And then fell Caesar. The unstoppable juggernaut that is the women's soccer team picked up two hard losses this week, falling to Washington University of St. Louis on Sunday and to the University of Chicago on Friday. It was the biggest setback in what had been an almost perfect season as the Judges lost consecutive games for the first time all season. The losses dropped the Judges to 10-3 for the season including 1-3 in the UAA.

The Judges' weekend ended with a crushing 4-0 defeat at the hands of Washington University Sunday. The 22nd-ranked Bears came out strong and cruised to a 4-0 win. The Bears scored 14 minutes into the game and went scoreless for the rest of the half before easily scoring three goals in the second half.

The loss against Washington University saw a lackluster Judges offensive as they registered only three shots on goal compared to the 10 shots on goal the Judges registered in defeating Tufts University the previous week. Rachel Koffman '06 and Lisa Kaplin '07 each had shots on goal, but neither converted. Natasha Pieciak '06 had four saves in the loss.

"We didn't really come prepared to play," coach Denise Dallamora said. "We were on the back of our heels and we didn't play to our potential."

"It's kind of just a reality check," Kaplin said. "We can't underestimate any opponent."

Despite the Judges offensive struggles throughout the weekend, their defense played well in their first game of the weekend against the University of Chicago. The Judges made a much better showing and were aggressive against the 13th-ranked Maroons. The Judges lost to Chicago last year 7-0 and were looking for redemption. The defense only allowed one goal, but the Judges were held scoreless, losing 1-0.

Chicago's only goal was scored by junior Rene Neuner, a two-time UAA player of the year. But this was a solid effort made by the Judges, who had the sour taste of last year's loss in mind.

Pieciak walked away with two saves, as the defense kept the score to one, despite the 18 shots the Maroon's took. The offense just could not get warmed up and ready to fire, with nine of eleven starters playing with injuries.

"A lot of [the players] are coming back from injury," Kaplin said. "We just have to forget about these two losses and we can have a strong end to the season."

"If we dwell on [the losses], that's not going to be a good thing," Dallamora said. "We need to get healthy, we're a little beat up. We need to get rejuvenated and go again."

The Judges will have most of the week to rest and recover before hosting St. Joseph's College on Saturday at 1 p.m. At 1-3 in the conference, the Judges are focused on winning their remaining UAA games. The Judges play Emory University on Oct. 29 and Carnegie Mellon University on Oct. 31.

"Emory and Carnegie Mellon will be our toughest games," Kaplin said. "Carnegie Mellon has a strong goalie and Emory will want revenge from last year when we beat them, on their own turf.