Bend, don't break.

It is one of those catchy and perhaps cliche high school football mottoes, seen on the back of shirts or emblazoned on a sign tacked up in the locker room.

The Shady Side Academy defense might want to think about using some different words to live by, because the unit has rarely bent this year, let alone been on the verge of breaking.

And yesterday, their punishing, energy-zapping defense was on full display again, as host Shady Side Academy's toughness shone through in a 14-3 victory against Valley in an Allegheny Conference clash.

It was the sixth time in seven games this season Shady Side held an opponent to seven points or fewer.

The Indians (7-0, 7-0) clinched a playoff spot with the win, while Valley fell to 5-2 overall, 5-2 in conference play. It was easy to see why it all happened: Shady Side's defensive front three, Nick Ciesielski, Tim Giel and Mont Pooley, disrupted any offensive continuity Valley tried to patch together and provided tackling lanes for linebacker Roman SanDoval to swoop in and finish plays.

"They had the spread, they had the power game and they had the traditional I," SanDoval said of the Vikings, who finished with just 67 yards rushing. "But, it was a 'bend don't break' kind of motto thing with us. We went out there against a team used to putting up a lot of points and gave up three. I'd say that's a pretty good effort."

Pretty good? Talk about your understatements.

"I just think we spend so much time with it," Shady Side coach Dave Havern said of his defense, before praising the unit's coordinator. "And then there is Dave Szlachetka. He is the dean, he knows defense better than any coach I have ever coached with."

It showed. Valley was frazzled, getting its only points on the final snap of the first half when Alexis Claassen -- the Vikings' female kicker -- booted a 25-yard field goal.

That field goal cut the score to 7-3, as Shady Side had scored on the previous drive when Brian Nickel plunged in from the 1. Nickel, who also scored an 11-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter for some insurance, finished with 146 yards on 27 carries.

His brother, Billy, the starting quarterback, sustained a gash under his lip early in the second quarter and was relegated to playing defense and punting.

Enter backup quarterback Max Heilbrunn, who effectively managed the Shady Side offense for the better part of three quarters.

Valley frittered away its best chance through the heart of the third quarter, when the Vikings -- trailing 7-3 -- held the football for more than six minutes and marched 66 yards but came up empty, turning it over on downs.

"That was crunch time for both teams," Havern said. "And our kids stepped up right there, our defense stepped up right there."

Truth is, the Shady Side defense stepped up all day yesterday -- just as it has all season.