The volleyball team dropped the first set in the championship match of the Western Connecticut State University Invitational on Saturday, and with the match suddenly on the line, the team seemed to falter and about to repeat their struggles from last season. This time, however, Brandeis surged to take the next three sets, win the tournament and improve to a 3-0 record after its first weekend of play.

The squad won the match against Western Connecticut State by margins of 22-25, 25-21, 25-19 and 25-21. Outside hitter Si-Si Hensley '14 earned the tournament's Most Valuable Player award and defensive specialist Elsie Bernaiche '15 was named as an All-Tournament selection.

Setter Yael Einhorn '14 was impressed with the team's efforts and further noted that Hensley and Bernaiche played key roles in the success.

"[Hensley] played really well," said Einhorn. "The entire team played well, but she and [Bernaiche] definitely earned the honors they received this weekend."

Western Connecticut State did not make it easy for the Judges. The Colonials won the final three points of the first set and held the momentum, but the Judges turned the tables in the second set, notching the final three points to even the score.

In the third set, Brandeis surged to an 11-0 run to turn an 8-5 deficit into a 16-8 lead. The Judges pushed the lead to 23-13 before the Colonials made a furious comeback. Yet, the women were able to ward off collapse and emerge victorious, needing just one more set to win the match and the tournament.

The Judges again scored in bunches in the fourth set, rallying to a 16-12 lead after trailing 12-9. While the Colonials stunned the Judges en route to taking a 21-19 lead, Brandeis would not let the match go to a tie-breaker, closing out the set on a 6-0 run to win the final match of the tournament.

Einhorn stressed that the Judges need to showcase more resiliency over the course of the season if they wish to avoid last season's problems.

"Last season, we struggled to come back after being down," Einhorn said. "It's all about mentality. We played together and never gave up at any point in the game. I think the fact that we did fight back and win this weekend shows that we can beat any team."

Outside hitter Liz Hood '15 led the way with 15 kills, while Hensley and Einhorn each tallied double-doubles. Einhorn had 18 digs and 37 assists, and Hensley had 20 digs and 11 kills.

The Judges battled with Johnson & Wales University in their first match on Saturday to preserve their perfect record. Brandeis certainly put in all of their effort. The team came back after losing the first and third sets to win 26-28, 25-18, 24-26, 25-23 and 15-11. Hood led the squad again with 16 kills, while middle blocker Maddie Engeler '16 shined in her collegiate debut with 13 kills. Bernaiche had 28 digs, and Einhorn just missed a chance at the half-century mark with 49 assists.

The Judges surged to a 2-0 set lead in defeating Salve Regina University 3-1 last Friday. The squad took the first two sets by scores of 25-19 and 28-26, but fell 25-22 in the third set. However, the Judges closed out the match with a 25-18 win to start the season off on the right note.

Hensley tallied a double-double with 14 kills and 16 digs. Bernaiche led the way with 19 digs for the Judges, and Hood posted nine kills. Einhorn led the way with 37 assists, and Engeler tallied eight blocks in her first college match.

Einhorn elaborated on the team's goals this season, saying that many players worked hard over the offseason to improve their game.

"All of us definitely have a lot of personal goals to improve our skills," she said.

"One of our main team goals is to make it to the [Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference] tournament, which hasn't been done for a few years now."

The Judges will try to take another step toward reaching that goal in Wednesday's home opener against Wellesley College at 7 p.m. They then will remain at home this weekend for the Brandeis Invitational Tournament on Friday with matches versus Babson College at 5 p.m. and Tufts University at 7 p.m.
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