With two minutes left in the second overtime in Thursday's game at the University of Massachusetts Boston, the women's soccer team was attacking their opponents' end in hopes of finding a winner.

However, this time, fortune was cruel to the Judges. After defending a cross, the Beacons countered. Senior forward Tayla Andrews finished off the move, scoring with one minute, 19 seconds left to play to give her team the victory, which resulted in a discouraging 2-1 defeat for Brandeis.

Right from the start, the game was evenly matched.

Beacons' junior forward Krista Ledin had the first two shots of the game, putting her first effort wide before seeing her second effort saved by goalkeeper Michelle Savuto '15.

At the other end, midfielder Mathilde Robinson '16 had a shot stopped by UMass Boston sophomore goalkeeper Kristen Spain.

The teams traded shots, as Ledin saw another effort saved by Savuto, while forward Holly Szafran '16 had a corner kick that was cleared away. The Judges, led by a team-high five shots from midfielder Sara Isaacson '16, continued to push for the opening goal.

However, it would be the Beacons who struck first midway through the first half.

Senior midfielder Amanda Pugliese played in a corner kick. The Judges failed to clear the ball and senior midfielder Sam Cristoforo made the most of the opportunity, putting the ball into the top of the net for a 1-0 lead.

Despite losing top-scorer and Third Team All-American Dara Spital '15 to an A.C.L. injury on Oct. 18, the Judges have been forced to change their formation to suit their strengths. According to Savuto, the team has switched to a deep-lying 4-4-2 formation.

"[Head Coach Denise Dallamora] hopes that by combining forwards [Szafran] and [Sapir] as strikers up top, our wing midfielders can set them up to score by winning the end line [and crossing the ball in]," Savuto explained.

"We are changing things up to allow for more connective passing and a more focused attack," she said. "I'm confident that once we get used to it, we'll find success."

Given the tactical change of playing two strikers further up the pitch, it seems no coincidence that the Judges' forward line got them back into the game.

Positioned 30 yards from goal, Edalati spotted Spain off her line. Edalati took a touch before lofting a high shot long-range effort over Spain's head and into the back of the net with 20 minutes, 26 seconds left in regulation.

Neither team was able to find the net in the final 20 minutes, and the game went to overtime.

In the first overtime, Edalati sent a header wide, while Ledin sent two efforts-one of which was as time expired-wide.

Though neither team could find the net in the first overtime, the second extra session saw the hosts land the killer blow.

While attacking the Beacons' end, the Judges were caught out on the counter attack.

Having gained possession, Cristoforo sent the ball to Andrews, who found herself with just Savuto to beat.

Yet, though Savuto did the correct thing for that situation and charged Andrews immediately, the UMass Boston attacker was able to round the goalkeeper and slotted into the empty net.

Though the loss was obviously a heartbreaker for the Judges, they will look to rebound with crucial University Athletic Association games this weekend. According to Savuto, the Judges are not hanging their heads, and she believes that her team still has a lot to play for despite suffering three consecutive tough losses.

"Team morale has been very positive even after the loss [against the Beacons]," she said. "We all recognized that we have faced some challenging opponents and now it is time to turn things up a notch. We know that the last three games, all of them conference teams, are a huge chance for us to improve our standing and prove people wrong after our last few setbacks. This season is not over and I believe that we are capable of being resilient and finding success against whatever odds we face."

The Judges first play at home on Friday against Washington University in St. Louis at 4 p.m., before taking on the University of Chicago on Sunday at 11 a.m.
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