In their first action back from winter break, the Brandeis women’s basketball team experienced an up-and-down week that featured match-ups against two University Athletic Association foes. 

On Friday night, the squad was blown out by the No. 10 ranked University of Rochester at home. Though the Judges lost an ugly one Friday, they quickly regained their footing in time for a Sunday duel, edging Emory University in a conference thriller. 

Judges 59 Emory 56

The Judges found better fortune Sunday afternoon, as they took on another UAA opponent at Emory University. The Judges notched a tight victory at home, defeating the Eagles 59-56 in a back-and-forth duel. 

The game was tight from tip-off, as the Judges found themselves down 19-18 at the end of the first, and 30-28 at the half. 

It was not until the fourth quarter that the Judges made up ground and took a somewhat comfortable lead.  They finished the quarter by outscoring Emory 18-14 to complete a 59-56 victory that brings the Judges to 8-6 on the year and 1-2 in UAA play. 

Guard Paris Hodges ’17, who totaled 14 points and five rebounds in the game, led the way for the Judges in the win. 

The Judges also got a hefty contribution from forward Sydney Sodine ’17, who finished with 13 points and grabbed eight rebounds in the squad’s victory. 

In their loss, Emory was led by sophomore guard Michelle Bevan, who led all scorers with 15 points, while also notching five rebounds. Junior forward Ilene Tsao scored 14 points while dishing out six assists and grabbing five rebounds in a well-rounded effort that ultimately proved insufficient for the Eagles.

After an awful shooting performance against Rochester on Friday, the Judges came out firing on all cylinders, finishing the game shooting 40.8 percent from the field and 41.2 percent from three-point territory. Equally important, the Judges shot an impressive 80.0 percent from the free-throw line. 

The Eagles shot 39.3 percent, 38.9 percent and 33.3 percent from the field, three-point line and free-throw line respectively in a losing effort. 

After being drastically out-rebounded on Friday night, the Judges hit the boards hard on Sunday, out-rebounding the Eagles by a 38-28 margin. That said, the box score indicates a balanced match-up between the two squads — one the Judges were fortunate to win. 

The loss drops the Eagles to 9-5 on the season and 0-3 in their overall conference competition. 

Looking ahead to the next week, the Judges travel to Washington University in St. Louis on Friday, then to the University of Chicago on Sunday for two more conference clashes. 

Judges 40, No. 10 Rochester 63

Despite leading after the first quarter against nationally ranked Rochester, the Judges fell apart over the course of the next two periods, getting outscored 37-16 leading into the fourth quarter to set up an easy victory for the Rochester YellowJackets. 

Sophomore forward Alexandra Leslie, who led all scorers with 16 points while adding eight rebounds as well, led Rochester. 

Sydney Sodine, who tallied eight points, led the Judges in scoring. Forward Kyla Gabriel ’17 added six points and eight rebounds. 

A closer look at the box score sheds light on the dominance with which Rochester defeated Brandeis. The YellowJackets out-rebounded the Judges by a 52-33 margin. 

Moreover, while Rochester shot merely 37.9 percent from the field, the Judges shooting performance proved even poorer, as they managed just 13 field goals in 58 tries. 

The Judges’ 22.4 field goal percentage and 40 points are both season lows. 

All things considered, however, the fact that the Judges found themselves down only four points at the half against a nationally ranked opponent gives reason to believe that on any given night the squad can run with any foe they face. 

The victory brought Rochester to 12-1 overall and 2-0 in UAA competition. The loss dropped the Judges to 7-6 on the year, and 0-2 in UAA play.