The Brandeis University softball team opened their season in California, concluding their first road trip of the season with a 3–3 record. 

The Judges opened their season with a doubleheader against Occidental College, splitting the two games. The Judges won the opener 7–3. Pitcher Sydney Goldman ’22 tossed a complete game, giving up five hits and three earned runs in seven innings. Goldman struck out eight and walked five batters, as the Judges tallied 13 hits behind Goldman’s dominant pitching performance. The Judges dropped the second game 5–4, with all four runs coming from home runs by Melissa Rothenberg ’21 and Jolie Fujita ’21. Both two-run shots were not enough to defeat Occidental, as the Judges fell.

While facing the Whittier College Poets, the Judges swept the doubleheader, winning the opener 7–3 and the second game 13–8. In the opener, the Judges tallied five runs in the second inning, with eight of the first nine batters reaching base. Tara Striggow ’23 and Brianna Urena ’20 opened the scoring, as each had a bases-loaded single. The Poets battled back from an early deficit, and Brandeis did not score again until the seventh inning. In the top of the seventh, Marley Felder ’22 drove in two runs, sealing the victory for the Judges. Goldman tossed another complete game, the 18th of her career. In the second game, Brandeis battled against the Poets, breaking a 3–3 tie in the fourth, scoring nine runs. In a 13–8 win over the Poets, four Judges tallied multiple hits, capped off with home runs from Striggow and Rothenberg. 

Concluding their West Coast road trip, Brandeis took on the University of Redlands Bulldogs. The Bulldogs swept the doubleheader, winning the opener 8–7 and the second game 6–0. In the opener, the Judges started the scoring with four runs in the first. However, Brandeis could not maintain their lead for long, as the Bulldogs scored five times in the bottom of the first. Trailing 5–4 in the second, Brandeis took the lead by adding two runs. Bridget Cifuni ’21 added a solo shot to put the Judges up 7–5. In the bottom of the fourth, the Bulldogs scored twice, later gaining the lead with a two-run home run off of Goldman. This was only Goldman’s third loss of her Brandeis career. In the second game, the Bulldogs tossed a shutout, as the Judges managed only four hits. The Judges squandered scoring opportunities in the fifth, as they loaded the bases with no outs. However, the Judges were unable to overcome the Bulldogs’ offense, losing the second game of the doubleheader as the Bulldogs completed the sweep. 

After a three-week break, the Judges will host the Clark University Cougars for their home opener on March 14.