It was a weekend of firsts for the women's basketball team: the Judges won at the University of Rochester for the first time since the 1998-1999 season before going on to trounce Carnegie Mellon University for the team's first University Athletic Association road-wining streak all season. The Judges, ranked No. 12 in the nation by d3hoops.com, topped the Yellowjackets 63-51 Friday and then cruised past the Tartans 65-51 Sunday.Brandeis improved to 17-3 and 8-3 in the UAA, and coupled with a loss by New York University Sunday, captured sole possession of second place in the conference behind only Washington University in St. Louis, the No. 3 team in the nation.

"Being on the bubble for the NCAAs, I think these wins will help us a lot," captain Amanda Demartino '06 said.

The Judges never trailed in the first half against Carnegie Mellon Sunday in Pittsburgh, scoring 20 points in the first 10 minutes of play. While the Tartans continued to challenge Brandeis throughout the first half, coming within one point during the final minutes of the half, the Judges reached halftime with a 33-26 halftime lead. Brandeis came out strong in the second and thrashed the Tartans for the remainder, cruising with an 18-point lead with less than ten minutes to play.

"It was really important that we focused on Carnegie because we didn't want them to take away what we'd worked for," captain Christine Clancy '06 said. "We really needed this win, so we knew if we didn't get fired up for it, we'd be in bad shape."

Clancy led the Judges with 14 points, while Caitlin Malcolm '07 added nine. Clancy also paced the Judges on the boards, grabbing 13 rebounds as Brandeis outrebounded the Tartans 43-38.

"Carnegie can be a spoiler," coach Carol Simon said. "You can't take them easily, especially on their home court.

Before storming through Pittsburgh, the Judges traveled to Rochester to battle the Yellow Jackets in a game that was close from the start, the Judges battled through multiple lead changes and struggled on their way to just 29 percent shooting from the floor that resulted in a nine-point deficit at halftime. Brandeis rallied immediately after the break behind Jaime Capra's '08 six straight points, and was down only two with less than 10 minutes to play. Lauren Orlando '09 came off the bench to carry Brandeis the rest of the way with eight straight points, putting the Judges ahead for good with 7:53 to play. "

It was really exciting because coach Carol [Simon] was the only one on our team who had ever won there," Clancy said.

Starters Clancy, Malcolm and Capra each had 12 points, while Demartino added eight.

"It was probably the most exciting game we've had all year," Capra said. "Everyone was so into it and it was a great feeling to know it was the first time the seniors [Demartino and Clancy] have won there."

With only three games left in the regular season, Brandeis will take on the three toughest opponents in the conference. The Judges first host No. 3-ranked and UAA-leading Washington University in St. Louis Friday. The Bears defeated Brandeis 83-66 in St. Louis on Jan. 22. Sunday, Brandeis will take on the University of Chicago, which the Judges beat 92-85 in overtime Jan. 20. The Judges will end the regular season Feb. 25 with a game against No. 20 New York University. The Violets handed Brandeis its first loss of the season Jan. 12 in New York.

"We know what we need to do," Simon said. "The nice thing about going into these next three games is that we control our own destiny and we don't have to worry about who's beating whom right now. If we go out and do what we need to do, everything lies in our hands."

Clancy said: "We just need to . play each of these games as if it's the National Championship.