When a Brandeis varsity team plays its final home game of the season, it is customary for the team to hold a small ceremony for its graduating seniors. For the volleyball team, no such ceremony was needed for this season's home finale, as the team has five first-year players but only three juniors and no seniors. And while the team started the game off strong, its youth ultimately shone through in last Saturday's 3-0 loss to the University of Massachusetts Boston. The Judges dropped in straight sets, 25-19, 25-14 and 25-19 to fall to 9-18 on the season. The No. 18 Beacons improved to 24-4 on the year.

"Our energy was really high in that first game, and it dropped a bit when they started getting a few points on us," middle blocker Becca Fischer '13 said of the team's performance. "Once they started running the faster plays, our defense wasn't able to keep up with them. They were able to keep a lot of things alive that we weren't expecting them to."

The Judges hung with the Beacons at the start of the match, surprising their opponents with a high-intensity game for much of the first set. After UMass Boston pulled ahead to a 10-8 lead, Brandeis took six of the next eight points, due in large part to service aces by both setter Yael Einhorn '14 and outside hitter Susan Sun '13. But an unforced error halted Brandeis' run, and UMass Boston reeled off a 9-2 run of their own to pull ahead 21-16. The teams traded blows for the next five points before back-to-back kills sealed the game for the Beacons.

"We talked a lot in the first game and played better as a team," outside hitter Si-Si Hensley '14 said. "[We had] better energy and better intensity, and as the game went on, we lost a lot of that."

UMass Boston roared out to an 8-4 lead in the second game. Brandeis regrouped after a timeout was called by coach Michelle Kim, pulling to a one-point difference at 10-9. Yet the Beacons closed on a 15-5 run, squelching any chance of a Brandeis comeback.

"A lot of it is about focus—we lost focus," Hensley said. "As long as we hold each other accountable, it'll go better [in the future]."

The Beacons quickly pulled ahead in the third set as well, taking 8-3 and 16-9 leads against an outmatched Brandeis squad. The Judges pulled back within four points, but had no answer for junior middle hitter Shannon Thompson, who had eight kills in the third set alone.

"It takes a lot to stop a player like her," Fischer said. "It's all about timing, especially when it comes to blocking. A great player like that can hit both quick and slow sets. It's all about watching her arm speed and knowing when to jump."

"It's one of those things where we have to adapt quicker to them," Hensley added. "We need to point out what her strengths are and work on placating them. And I don't think we did that as well as we could have and should have done."

Offensively, Brandeis was paced by outside hitter Liz Hood '15, who had 11 kills on the game. Hensley added eight kills and a team-high 12 digs. Setter Yael Einhorn '14 chipped in 22 assists.

UMass Boston was lead by Thompson's game-high 18 kills. Senior setter Casey Hannenman added 33 assists, and junior libero Kayla Wilson had 16 digs.

The Judges close out their season at the University Athletic Association tournament this weekend, held at New York University. The squad takes on the top-seeded Emory University Eagles on Friday. Saturday's match will be determined based on Friday's results.

"Emory is a very good team," Fischer said. "We need everyone at the top of their game and with high energy for the match."