WALTHAM, Mass. – For the fourth year in a row, both the Brandeis men's and women's soccer teams have earned a spot in the Division III preseason Top 25 released by the United Soccer Coaches. The men are ranked 4th in Division III, while the women are 25th.
The Brandeis men are coming off back-to-back appearances in the Final Four of the NCAA Division III tournament in head coach Gabe Margolis's first season. The Judges have reached the Sweet 16 of the tournament in six-straight seasons, the second-longest active streak in Division III. Brandeis will return second-leading scorer Andrew Allen (Norfolk, Mass./King Phillip Regional), the only one of their top four returners. The Judges are slated to meet five other top-10 opponents this season: #3 Chicago, #5 Tufts, #8 Emory, #9 Rochester and #10 Amherst. Brandeis opens its 2018 campaign on August 31st at Endicott College. The Judges meet Springfield College – a team receiving votes in the poll – on September 5th in their home opener.
The Brandeis women will be guided by Denise Dallamora. In her 39th season on the sidelines, Dallamora is the only women's soccer head coach in school history. The Judges are looking for a fifth-straight trip to the NCAA tournament, including a Final Four trip in 2016. They return all but two starters from a year ago, with first-team All-University Athletic Association selection senior Sasha Sunday (Bethlehem, Pa./Bethlehem Catholic Central) the team's scoring leader with nine points and nine assists for 27 points. The Judges have four other Top 25 opponents on their schedule this year: #2 Chicago, #10 Washington University, #11 Carnegie Mellon and #14 MIT. The Judges and Engineers open the season in Waltham on Sept. 1st, with Brandeis meeting local rivals Lasell College the next day.
Brandeis is one of six programs with both men's and women's teams in the top 25: Messiah (Men #1, Women #5); Chicago (Women #2, Men #3); Johns Hopkins (Women #6, Men #13); Trinity (Texas) (Women #12, Men #17) and Lynchburg (Women #16, Men #21).