The women's soccer team hit the ground running last week with victories over Clark University and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. The squad shut out their opponents by a combined score of 4-0 in an impressive display of cohesion for so early in the season.

"I think that we connected really well on the field," midfielder Mary Shimko '12 explained. "We were putting together some great passes, our defense was great at stopping the attacks, and they were swinging the ball around, which created space for our offense."

Last Saturday, the Judges defeated MIT 2-0 at home. The team got off to a shaky start, allowing the Engineers several chances in the 11th minute. MIT junior forward Emily Kuo rifled a shot that hit the crossbar, and her shot rebounded right to teammate Casandra Ceri, a junior midfielder. Ceri's follow-up, however, was pushed over the net by Brandeis goalie Francine Kofinas '13.

Kofinas stopped Ceri on another chance in the 15th minute.

The Judges quickly regrouped and took advantage of MIT's missed opportunity. In the 20th minute, Brandeis was awarded a free kick 25 yards out to the right of the box. Defender Kelly Peterson '14 placed the free kick to the head of midfielder Mimi Theodore '12, who then directed it towards the opposite side of the net, away from the goalkeeper. Midfielder Mary Shimko '14 finished, putting it in the back of the net for her second goal of the season, and fourth of her young career.

The Judges from that point on seized control of the game, outshooting their opponents 9-3 in the second half. Theodore finally doubled the lead in the 72nd minute, finding the net on a cross from midfielder Francesca Shin '12. Shin made a nice move to get free with the ball in the box, where she sent it to Theodore. It was Theodore's first goal of the season and the 19th of her career. The Judges did not look back and cruised to a well-earned 2-0 victory.

Brandeis opened its season last Thursday, defeating Clark 2-0 at home. The Judges outshot the Cougars 5-3 in the first half, with Clark registering only two shots on goal. Kofinas stopped both attempts, including an impressive diving save in the 21st minute on a shot by Clark junior Hana Chamoun. The Judges did not register any significant chances in the first half.

Brandeis started the second half on a much better note. In the second minute of the half, midfielder Alanna Torre '12 and Clark senior goalie Audrey Eisemann became entangled in a challenge for the ball near the box. Torre was able to nudge the ball forward to Shimko, who put it in for the goal.

"I was very impressed with Mary Shimko," Theodore said of the sophomore. "I have a lot of confidence in her. Before the Clark game, I told the women's head basketball coach, Carol Simon, that Mary was going to score the first goal, and sure enough she did. She is a strong player who is always working hard."

The Judges found their second goal on a cross from the end line to rookie midfielder Sapir Edalti '15. Edalti struck the cross into the net for her first goal of her Brandeis career in the 74th minute of the game. The Judges stifled Clark for the remainder of the game to wrap up the 2-0 victory. Brandeis outshot Clark 12-4 for the game and 7-1 in an impressive second-half performance.

Theodore said that she was happy with the way that the offense performed against Clark.

"We did a very good job of moving the ball around, especially against Clark," she said. "We seemed to not force play as much but maintain possession until finding the open person."

The Judges are coming off losing the winningest senior class in program history. However, this past week the team seemed to have the pieces in place to continue the program's recent success.

"Last year we got to experience the feeling of being in an NCAA tournament," Shimko said. "The excitement of last year's season is motivational. We want to keep the same goals we did last year and improve upon them. We still have a lot of starters from last year and our leadership is huge. The seniors this year really push us and expect a lot out of us."

The Judges are next in action tomorrow at Lassell College. They take on the Lasers at 4:30 p.m.