The last time the men's soccer team won a conference game was in 2006, when the Judges defeated then-No. 21 New York University 2-1 on a neutral field. Last Saturday, the squad earned its first University Athletic Association win in three years with a 1-0 win at Case Western Reserve University. The triumph concluded the Judges' best week of the season after a resounding 6-1 home win over Newbury College last Wednesday. The Judges now stand at 3-4-1 on the season and are 1-0 in UAA play. The combined efforts of midfielder Corey Bradley '10 and goalie Matt Lynch '11 helped lead Brandeis against the Spartans in its UAA opener last Saturday. Bradley scored the lone goal and his first of the season in the 43rd minute on a brilliant strike. He launched a shot from 35 yards out that just dipped under the crossbar in the top right corner.

"[It was] one of the best goals I've seen in my career," Lynch said.

Case attempted to come back in the second half, striking 10 shots, including four on target. Yet Lynch was up to the task, tying his season-high mark with six saves. It was his fourth career shutout but his first in UAA action.

The victory was even more significant given that Case Western had just tied Ohio Wesleyan University, the No. 2-ranked team in the country.

"They tied the second-ranked team, so the fact that we beat them really shows that we have a lot of potential to do well," Coach Mike Coven said.

The team started out slowly against Newbury, as the visitors struck first with their only goal of the game in the fourth minute. The Judges struck right back, though, as forward Matt Peabody '13 knotted the score 16 minutes later off of a strong through ball by Bradley. Midfielder Sam Ocel '13 put the Judges ahead for good in the 40th minute off of a feed from forward Noah Bass '12.

Peabody's quick start in the second half helped the Judges pull away. Peabody found forward Alexander Farr '12 in the 52nd minute to put the Judges up 3-1. The goal was Farr's third of the season, tying him with Peabody for the team lead.

But Peabody knocked in his fourth goal of the year just three minutes later off a deflection off of the Newbury goalkeeper. Midfielders Steve Keuchkarian '11 and Ed Senibaldi '12 rounded out the Brandeis scoring spree in the 74th and 87th minutes, respectively.

The Brandeis netkeepers were untested for most of the night, as the hosts managed to outshoot Newbury 36-1. Lynch allowed the lone goal in the first half, while Blake Minchoff '13 wasn't tested in his first collegiate appearance.

After struggling out of the gate, the team has picked it up in its last few games. After starting the season 0-3-1 the Judges have now won three of their past four games, including their only conference match thus far.

"We knew from the start that we had a good team and that we had a lot of talent, but we just weren't pulling games out," Lynch said.

Despite the newfound success, the team isn't letting the victories get to their heads. Though the results have begun to look promising, the players still know there is room for improvement.

"We start four or five freshmen and a couple of sophomores, so we are a very young team and we are still making some of the mistakes that young teams tend to make," Coven said. "We are maturing, though, as the younger players start to learn what college soccer is all about."

"We really came together and played very hard these past two games, but we still have a lot of work to do," Lynch added. "Right now we are just taking it one game at a time."

The Judges' next test will come Thursday when they travel to Colby-Sawyer College at 4 p.m. Their UAA home opener is Saturday night against the University of Rochester at 5 p.m.



-Jonathan Steinberg contributed reporting