No sleeping on Shaw after senior forward’s late goal lifts Eagles to District championship
Published 10:25 am Tuesday, November 10, 2026
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SPRINGFIELD — With a teammate as talented and highly-regarded as Spencer Rinne and another teammate as proven clutch in his career as Jake Harvey, the spotlight and accolades had eluded Nixa forward Gavin Shaw.
Shaw was the Eagles’ leading scorer last season, but didn’t get voted onto the All-COC East First Team.
Well, everything changed for him Monday.
Shaw made himself a household name in the SWMO soccer circles by netting the lone goal in Nixa’s 1-0 long-sought-after Class 4 District 5 final triumph over Glendale.
Shaw scored with just 2:47 remaining to play.
While talking to the media for the first time in his career, Shaw was asked if he was ready for all the forthcoming attention and fanfare.
“Of course, I was born ready,” Shaw exclaimed.
He added he hasn’t felt put off being in the shadow of a special player the likes of Rinne.
“Spencer definitely deserves it. He’s pushing 40 goals this season,” Shaw said. It’s always good having him up (top) with me.”
Now, of course, is Shaw’s time to shine.
“You can’t sleep on Gavin,” goalkeeper Jackson Smith said. “His work ethic is unmatched, I see him every day. He came through tonight.”
As the third Nixa-Glendale District title tilt in as many years unfolded, it became clear Shaw very well could be the Eagles’ most likely candidate to find the back of the net.
He had broken free for several breakaways with the ball, only to be denied.
“I was having a tough game,” Shaw said. “Coaches were talking to me, telling me to keep pushing.”
“He was playing well and getting some really good (opportunities), but their ‘backs were doing a great job getting in the way and getting something on their foot or a toe on (the ball) and winning it,” coach Evan Palmer said. “I know he was frustrated. But he kept going. Any of our (forwards or midfielders) are capable at any moment of making something brilliant happen. It was Gavin’s night tonight. He kept battling, kept winning the ball and kept going to goal. When you do that, good things usually happen.”
Shaw took his winning kick along the end line. Like a pinball, it deflected off a Glendale player, out of the reach of a diving Falcons ‘keeper and into the goal.
“I was looking for Spencer or Jake or one of my runners,” Shaw said of nearly making a pass. “It ended up being a decent ball and it just happened to hit one of their players and went in. (The deflection) wasn’t what I was hoping or planning, but definitely great to happen. Scoring the game-winning goal is definitely a top of moment in my life.”
“You put the ball in the box like that in a good position and a lot of times good things happen,” Palmer said. “We tell the boys all the time, ‘Put the ball in there and we’ll see what happens.’”
About five minutes prior to his goal, Shaw’s resilience was also put to the test when he went to the turf with calf cramps in both of his legs.
It was a feeling he already knew all too well, but the first instance of cramps hindering him this season.
“I’ve been taking pickle juice shots before games. I dealt with cramps a lot last season,” Shaw said. “They’d always be really bad and I could barely walk. Hamstring (cramps) are more painful because your whole leg stiffens up. I’d much rather have a calf cramp. I feel they’re slightly less painful and it’s a smaller area and easier to stretch out.
“When both of my calves cramped. I thought I was going to have to go off,” he added. “I knew I had to stay on. Luckily, it wasn’t as bad tonight as I thought it was.”
The match lived up to all its hype, with both sides playing with exceptional intensity and both goalkeepers making diving saves.
For Smith, it was his first real taste of post-season pressure with a match on the line. The first-year starting senior didn’t have to fend off many shots on goal in Nixa’s relatively easy first-round and semifinal victories.
Smith responded in a winning manner exactly how he planned.
“I don’t feel the pressure,” Smith said. “I try to be my best every time I come out here and trust my guys and trust my abilities and stay consistent. I try to be consistent in everything I do.”
“The saves he made tonight were incredible,” Palmer said.
Overall, Nixa’s defense gained redemption, after the Eagles fell to Glendale 3-2 in the teams’ regular-season meeting.
“A few weeks ago, Glendale taught us a lesson,” Palmer said. “We were playing a different format and they found our gaps and exploited them with three goals in the first half. We were lucky enough to learn from it. This was a great shutout.”
Nixa (23-3) advances to play at Lee’s Summit West (14-7) in a Quarterfinal on Saturday.
The Eagles are two wins away from matching their program’s single-season school record 25 wins, set in 2015.
Shaw’s game-winner upped Nixa’s goal count to 119, just one shy of the Eagles’ standard of 120 goals that has stood since 2011.
