The Brandeis volleyball team has suffered a rough week, and they are now in the midst of a four–game losing streak. This week, they were unable to pull out a win against any of the teams they played. These included the first games the Judges played against three University Athletic Association rivals in the first series of UAA round robins. 

Case Western 3, Judges 1

On Sunday, the Judges suffered a tough loss against Case Western Reserve University, the fourth game in their current losing streak. They lost the first set with a score of 25–21. The set began with a strong showing for Case Western as they scored the first three points; however, a kill by Kaisa Newberg ’22 put the Judges on the scoreboard. The Judges took the lead, scoring the set’s next five points before Case Western finally scored again, the score then being 4–5 in favor of the Judges. Although the Judges pulled ahead at one point to lead the set by 6–11, Case Western fought back hard, ultimately creating a lead that the Judges would not be able to overcome.

In the second set, the Judges fought back hard and were victorious with a score of 20–25. This was a close match for most of the game, and the game was tied at several points — at scores of three, four, five, seven and 20. However, following this back-and-forth motion of each team being in the lead, kills by Newberg, Shea Decker-Jacoby ’19 and Emma Bartlett ’20 and service aces from Case Western’s Noel Jeansonne and Jana Giaquinto provided the needed push to help the Judges win this set.

Unfortunately, however, the Judges failed to take the match as they lost the final two sets. One was lost with a score of 16–25, and the other was a really tough set, and the Judges lost 25–8. As the third game against a UAA opponent, this put the Judges 0–3 in the UAA.

Judges 0, WashU 3

In the second loss of the first UAA Round Robin, the Judges were defeated by Washington University in Saint Louis. The Judges lost all three sets that were played in this match. However, they came close to winning the second set as they overcame an 8–1 deficit in order to lead with a score of 14–13. However, WashU continued strong and maintained their victory.

This match was led by Decker-Jacoby, as she had six kills. Bartlett also played strong with four kills. Stephanie Boor ’22 was another  asset for the team, bringing three service aces to the court. This game was the third in the losing streak that they are currently in, and after this game, they were 0–2 in the UAA.

Chicago 3, Judges 1

In the first game against a UAA rival and in this first UAA Round Robin, the Judges failed to pull out a victory against the University of Chicago. The Judges began strong, defeating Chicago in the first set. The set was a hard-fought match for both teams as each struggled to maintain any sort of lead initially. However, after a service ace from Chicago’s Sarah Muisenga, the Judges maintained a steady lead that would bring them to an initial 1–0 lead in that match, in terms of sets. Unfortunately, the Judges failed to maintain this lead throughout the next three sets, costing them the match.

After that set, Chicago went on to win the next three sets by scores of 25–17, 25–17 and 25–18. Bartlett helped the Judges significantly with 11 kills, and Decker-Jacoby contributed eight. However, the team started off their round robin and matches against their UAA rivals with this loss.

Judges 1, Roger Williams 3

On Tuesday, Sept. 25, the Judges fell to the Roger Williams University Hawks to begin a four-game losing streak. There were seven ties and three changes in lead during the first set, and both teams struggled to hold any sort of lead. The Judges were able to score seven of the set’s consecutive points to break a 7–all tie; however, the Hawks persevered and pulled ahead to a 21–19 lead. After the Judges called a timeout, the Hawks continued to dominate until they won the set with a 26–24 victory.

The second set began with a point for the Judges, and the set went on to tie four more times. However, the Judges never allowed the Hawks to pull ahead of them, and managed to win their only set with a score of  25–20. In the third and fourth sets, the Judges fell to Roger Williams with a score of 16–25 in the third set and a close 23–25 in the fourth.