The scene looks strikingly familiar. Rachel Koffman '06, the ball at her feet as the result of a string of passes starting with the defense, finds a streaking Lauren Gregor '06, who runs on to the ball within scoring distance and prepares to pull the trigger. Suddenly, a whistle blows.Offsides? Half-time? Neither-water break.

What could have been a play from any of the women's' soccer team's 16 wins last season was actually an inter-squad scrimmage on Saturday, their second day of pre-season training.

Gregor and Koffman captain this year's squad, which head coach Denise Dallamora thinks has the potential to be as successful as last year's team that reached the ECAC championship game before falling to Western Connecticut College.

"The kids have a great attitude and work ethic," Dallamora said. "They have good chemistry and I think all those things are going to make for a great season."

One player who is sure to play an integral part in the team's success is Lisa Kaplin '07. Last year, Kaplin led the Judges in goals scored, tallying 15 in the team's 21 games.

"We have a lot of talent this year," she said. "There's no reason why we shouldn't be able to achieve the same success as we did last year."

If the team wants to come out on the winning end of the title game this season, it will have to overcome some obstacles.

"We really have to focus on defense," Dallamora said. "We are still trying to figure out what roles the [first-years] will play, but I think they're getting it."

One obstacle the Judges will have to overcome is the loss of two captains. Natasha Pieciak '06 and Jillian Peo '06 were both intergal members of the team before quitting during the offseason.

"We'll be hurting without the two of them," Kaplin said. "[Pieciak] was an amazing goal keeper who gave us a lot of confidence and [Peo] was a good player on our mid line."

In addition to the rookies needed to replace valuable positions left open by last year's graduates, Dallamora is also looking to the returning players to lead by example.

"It is going to be very important for the junior class in particular to step up and take a leadership role, and they have already," she said. "Everyone's really taken one step more from last year, on the field and off."

The road to post-season play will not be easy. The consistently competitive UAA conference will be as tough as ever, with rivals like Emory and Washington University in St. Louis adding quality rookies to their rosters.

Newcomer Kendall Cox, a former defender for Bowdoin, will assist Dallamora. Cox says she is looking forward to the upcoming season and the opportunity to gain coaching experience with a program that has had as much success as Brandeis.

"I'm very excited to be a part of the program," she said. "It's a great team, and so far I'm having a lot of fun."

Gregor, who chipped in with 13 goals and seven assists last year, is also optimistic about the upcoming season.

"We have to find people to fill roles that are now open, but it will be a great opportunity to feature some new talent," she said. "By working out kinks in the preseason, we're bound to have a great season."

And what obstacles will the Judges need to overcome to repeat their playoff appearance? Dallamora's philosophy is very simple:

"We need to score more goals than we allow," she said. "We're going to take it game by game and we'll do well."

The Judges kick off their season on Saturday when they host MIT at 1 p.m.