The Judges made a statement in the collegiate and professional sporting worlds over the past week.

Swimming
The swimming and diving program will feature some new faces for the 2012-13 season. Breda O'Connor, who worked with and swam for coach Mike Kotch at Bentley University, will take over as assistant swimming coach. Charlotte Rea '09 will assume the diving coach role.

After receiving her master's in Organizational and Professional Communication from Regis College in 2011, O'Connor took over the Pride's program and led them to notable finishes at the New England Intercollegiate Swimming and Diving Association meet and Great Northeast Athletic Conference meets.

Prior to her stint at Regis, O'Connor swam for Coach Kotch at Bentley, where she received her bachelor of science in marketing. While a Falcon, she was on a squad that went 39-14 over four years, serving as captain when she was a senior.

As an undergraduate, Rea who received a bachelor of arts in theater had an illustrious career for Brandeis, where she still ranks in the top three of most major diving categories in the Judges' record book. She qualified for the NCAA Division III Championship in each of her four seasons competing for the Judges. As a senior, she was All-UAA in the one-meter, and received an Athletic Director's Award for her achievements following her senior season.

"Breda and Charlotte are tremendous additions to the staff," Kotch said. "Having worked well with Breda in the past, and knowing of Charlotte's skill in her sport and familiarity with Brandeis, I know we can bring the program to new heights."

The Judges will compete for the first time since 2009 on Oct. 20 against Wheaton College.

Men's Tennis

Two senior tennis players put in top performances at the Middlebury Invitational last weekend to kick off this year's campaign. Captains Josh Jordan '13 and Steven Milo '13 got to the finals of the 'A' flight doubles by virtue of their three consecutive victories.

In the semi-finals, Jordan and Milo struck down Skidmore's Oliver Loutsenko and Danny Knight in a hard fought 8-6 decision. Though they would ultimately fall 8-2 against a pair of All-Americans - Matt Bettles and Rob Crampton of Bates College -t hey showed great promise along the way. The strength of their finals' opponents was apparent, as the 'A' singles final was contested between the aforementioned Bates players.

In singles action, Jordan defeated Dan Freeman of Vassar by scores of 6-4, 7-6 (7-5). He met his match against Middlebury, falling 6-0, 6-0 in the quarterfinals of 'A' singles.

Nelson Figueroa

Where has Nelson Figueroa '99 been since leaving Brandeis?

A Brooklyn native, Figueroa graduated from Brandeis with a degree in American Studies and became the first player in Brandeis history to have his number retired. He was drafted by the New York Mets in the 1995 Major League Baseball draft and made his MLB debut in 2000 with the Arizona Diamondbacks. He spent some time in various leagues, including the Mexican League and Venezuelan Professional League. Though he made a return to the MLB in 2009 for the Mets and tossed a four-hitter against the St. Louis Cardinals, he ultimately found himself released by several teams, including the Houston Astros and Pittsburgh Pirates.

Thursday night, though, he pitched the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox to their first International League Governor's Cup in 28 years, winning the decisive game 4-1.

Prior to the clincher, he emerged victorious in the deciding game of the first playoff round, where his team defeated the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, which was a notable accomplishment given that his team qualified for the playoffs as a wild card due to its 79-65 record.

While he isn't one who will threaten to start in the major leagues given his age and wear on his body (he has pitched 1,992 minor league innings and 499 major league innings), Figueroa has hinted that he still has something left.
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