The Shaunavon Shadows clinched a spot in an SHSAA 9-man Football Provincial Semi-Final Saturday afternoon.

The Shadows and Unity Warriors certainly had a defensive battle early on in their quarter-final game at Shadows Field, as the first quarter passed by scoreless.

In the second, Shaunavon got on the board courtesy of Nixen Voll, who unsurprisingly returned a Unity punt the other way for a touchdown - Voll set a school record in the regular season returning six punts for scores in six games. However, a missed extra point kept the score at 6-0 Shaunavon.

With both the wind, and the Shadows heading south towards the end zone, the brisk breeze aided Voll in the punting game, as he booted the ball through the end zone for the single point, and later added a second single off of a punt, after grade 12 cornerback Reese Erickson intercepted the pass from Unity's Zenon Orobko and the Shadows offense stalled near mid-field.

The Shadows carried the 8-0 lead into the half, and part of the third quarter, when the Shadows offense finally broke loose courtesy of Voll once again, this time on a 37 yard rush with some help from a dominant display of blocking by the Shaunavon offensive line.

Now up 15-0, the Shadows continued to lock down the Unity run game - a key element of head coach Garret Glasrud and the coaching staff's game plan.

"The guys were really focused. We had our gameplan, and we just put it to work, and the guys really liked when they could see it unfold," said Glasrud. "I'm incredibly proud of our defense. They did a great job to stuff the run. They (Unity) got a few plays on us, but for the most part we contained it either on the outside or up the gut."

The Warriors were forced to rely on their passing game more as the game neared the final stages of the fourth quarter, but nothing could materialize through the air either for the visiting side.

Then, after a bit of a wild stretch where tensions ran high after a barrage of penalties, including the ejection of a Unity player, Voll split the uprights on a field goal with just over a minute left to officially seal the deal and close the scoring at 18-0.

Despite lockdown defense, and strong special teams play across the board, the Shadows utility player says an important facet of the game was Shaunavon's ability to control the field position battle and clock management.

"Wasting time was just one of the biggest parts after we got that lead. They were a good team, and the further back the ball was, it was a lot easier on our defense to make a stop," Voll said.

Up next, the Shadows are off to the northwest for a semi-final contest against the Nipawin Bears on Saturday, November 4. The Bears also went 4-2 in their respective conference this season.