3United woke up early from their Saturday slumbers to meet Voodoo for battle in Waigaoqiao to find out who would be the victor in their SIFL quarter-final. 3United lost a few players pre-game to various ailments but by time 9am came around, they had a strong squad ready to trade blows.

Both teams not only had to contend with each other but also a hard, uneven ground that through the ball every which way even on short passes on the ground. 3United started out with some dominant play, winning their clashes and slicing through the Voodoo defense but they were not able to attain goal-ry. Voodoo earned some possession and pushed hard against the defense but the keeper and defensive line held like stone against a spring breeze. With 15 minutes left in the half, trusty striker, Nick Law, ran onto a throughball from Julian Wolff and hustled past the Voodoo lines and keeper to give 3U the 1-0. The half ended 1-0 to 3United.

In the second half Voodoo mixed up their attack and put a lot more pressure on the 3United midfield and defense. Much of the half went goal-less, with most of the play being seen charging down the wings of both halves of the field. 3United on one of these charges finally broke through the Voodoo lines – Sascha Hoeltke lobbed a cross to the edge of the keeper box where Nick Law was waiting, finishing it off with a header. Voodoo was held off a goal until an arguable foul in the box was called and awarded them a penalty. They took it cleanly and reduced 3U’s lead back down to one. Both sides were eager to get another goal before the end of the game – 3U, to solidify the win, Voodoo, to send the game to golden-goal overtime – but neither side were able to do so. The game ended with 3United heading to the semi-finals, final score: 3United 2, Voodoo 1.

Man of the match honors: Derek Yesionowski