Several area teams are looking to continue their football seasons and advance to their respective section finals as they take the field for semifinals action on Saturday.

Sleepy Eye United will travel to Springfield for a 3 p.m. game, while New Ulm Cathedral treks to Lamberton for a 2 p.m. game. Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop is set to take on Cleveland at 2 p.m., while Cedar Mountain travels to Wabasso for a 2 p.m. game.

Here are some takeaways for each matchup.

SEU AT SPRINGFIELD,

SECTION 3A SEMIFINALS, 3 P.M., OCT. 25

SEU almost pulled off one of the bigger upsets of the prep football season when they took their rival Springfield Tigers to overtime on Oct. 3 in Sleepy Eye.

SEU didn’t get the win ultimately as they fell 28-22 in overtime, but they were the only team to take Springfield to overtime this season and were the only team to come within one score of the Tigers all season, which is still the case.

The two teams have met in the playoffs the previous two seasons also, two years ago being the section finals and last year in the semifinals, both wins for Springfield.

The 8-0, No. 1-seeded Tigers are averaging 47 points per game while allowing just 11.1 ppg and haven’t allowed any team to score more than 18 points against them all season. The team that scored 18 points against the Tigers was Tracy-Milroy-Balaton in Week 3, but the Tigers also put up 68 points in that win.

Tigers quarterback Parker Kuehn has continued his strong prep career through the air as he has completed 70% of his passes this season for 2,117 yards, 31 TDs and just four interceptions. His top target has again been Isaac Fredin (41 receptions, 589 yards, 14 TDs), but he’s also been able to spread it around to players like Madden Lendt (27 receptions, 527 yards, eight TDs), Kadyn Anderson (17 receptions, 368 yards, three TDs) and Braxton Brown (17 receptions, 368 yards, three TDs), just to name a few.

The ground game has been a factor for the high-scoring Tigers also as Paytin Johnson has carried the ball a team-high 85 times for 737 yards and six TDs, while Colten Sell has added 28 carries for 220 yards and four scores.

Aiden Moriarty anchors the Springfield defense with 75 tackles, two forced fumbles and three fumble recoveries, while Adiel Trevino has 74 tackles and Tyson Horkey adds 30 tackles and 4.5 sacks. Tayte Hall leads the Tiger defense in interceptions with three.

SEU, a 4-5 team, entered the playoffs as the No. 5 seed and knocked off fourth-seeded TMB 28-12 this past Tuesday in Tracy. SEU is averaging 20.1 ppg and allowing 21.6 ppg.

SEU quarterback Brayden Heiderscheidt has thrown for 914 yards, nine touchdowns and eight interceptions, but the team has found the bulk of its success on offense from the ground game, led by sophomore Keeyan Netzke, who has 72 carries for 446 yards and seven TDs. Gavin Fischer adds to that ground game with 72 carries for 228 yards and a TD.

When SEU is dropping back and letting Heiderscheidt air it out, his trusted receiver Carson Uecker has earned much of the targets with 27 catches for 507 yards and five TDs. Tyler Mathiowetz added five catches for 186 yards.

The SEU defense sees Nick Tauer led the way with 93 tackles, 58 solos, and three sacks, while Davin Suess added 45 tackles and a sack and Ari Krzmarzick has 42 tackles. Uecker’s hands aren’t utilized solely on offense, either, as he’s intercepted six passes this season to lead SEU’s pass defense. Tyler Mathiowetz and Merrick Mathiowetz also have three interceptions apiece for the defense.

NEW ULM CATHEDRAL AT RRC, SECTION 2, NINE-MAN SEMIFINALS,

2 P.M., OCT. 25

The fourth-seeded New Ulm Cathedral Greyhounds (5-4) earned their way to a semifinals game with a 22-6 win over fifth-seeded Renville County West this past Tuesday at New Ulm’s Johnson Field. Greyhounds standout running back Alex Portner passed the 1,000-yard rushing mark on the season in the win and now sits at 1,093 yards on 152 carries. He also has 13 TDs.

In the way of the section finals for Cathedral stands the unbeaten, top-seeded Red Rock Central Falcons (8-0). The Falcons topped Cathedral 28-6 in the season opener in New Ulm.

Cathedral has averaged 22.8 points per game and allowed 20.7 ppg, while RRC has steamrolled through teams with 44.2 ppg while allowing 16.1 ppg.

One big part of RRC’s offensive dominance this season has been thanks to senior two-way player Carter Therkilsen, who has rushed for 1,924 yards on the season and 24 touchdowns, losing just one fumble all year. On defense, he’s picked up 48 tackles and intercepted three passes.

Quarterback Abe Stavnes hasn’t had to throw the ball too much, but he’s completed 58% of his passes for 720 yards, 11 TDs and no interceptions. Stavnes has also been a big part of the ground game for RRC as he’s rushed for 760 yards and nine TDs on 92 carries.

His top target through the air has been a Therkilsen, but not Carter. Jordan Therkilsen leads the Falcons with 23 catches, 361 yards and six TD receptions.

On defense, RRC is led by Jonah Skarupa’s 70 tackles, 26 solos, and four sacks, while Jake Erickson adds 64 tackles. Finn Batalden also has three interceptions for the RRC defense, while Jordan Therkilsen added 50 tackles.

While the Greyhounds’ offense has been led by Portner, they spent the first three games of the season without fullback Adrian Henry, who has been a welcome addition back to the offense since his return in Week 4.

Where the Greyhounds have been able to capitalize on teams so far, however, is with their defense and taking care of the ball. With a plus-8 turnover ratio, the Greyhounds’ defense has been key in the bulk of their victories this season. Camden Berg leads the defense with 109 total tackles, while Even Blekestad adds 106 tackles and Ike Kirschstein adds five sacks and three fumble recoveries. Henry Forst also has scooped up three fumbles for the Greyhounds’ defense.

CEDAR MOUNTAIN AT WABASSO, SECTION 2, NINE-MAN SEMIFINALS,

2 P.M., OCT. 25

The No. 2-seeded Wabasso Rabbits (7-1) have enjoyed their first year of nine-man football, with the only team standing in their way of an unbeaten season being unbeaten RRC, which defeated Wabasso 28-14 in Week 7 in Wabasso.

No. 3-seeded Cedar Mountain (5-4) has had a roller-coaster season, but the Cougars have shown an ability to keep up with the top seeds in their section. Against RRC on Sept. 26, the Cougars put up 30 points but were unable to slow down Carter Therkilsen and the Falcons as the Falcons won 45-30 in Morgan. In Week 2 when the Cougars traveled to Wabasso, their defense kept things manageable but the offense was unable to get much of anything going as the Rabbits won 22-0.

Wabasso is averaging 37.2 ppg and allowing 14.8 ppg, while Cedar Mountain ins averaging 32.2 ppg and allowing 25.6 ppg.

The Wabasso offense has been guided by quarterback Drew Kemp, who has completed 71% of his passes for 1,271 yards, 12 TDs and just one interception during the loss to RRC. Nolan Leopold has been the top target for the Rabbits as he’s hauled in 38 passes for 528 yards and five TDs, while Jack Burns adds 19 catches for 267 yards and two TDs.

While the passing game has been effective, the Rabbits really shine when they can hand the ball off to numerous different players. Joe Rohlik has led the ground game with 86 carries for 603 yards and eight TDs, while Zach Skoblik had 48 carries for 294 yards and four TDs. Those two players aside, five other players have at least 20 carries for the Rabbits this year also, showing balance and talent from many different areas. The Rabbits have 1,833 yards of offense from the ground game total and 28 TDs.

Cedar Mountain has shown a balanced attack, captained by senior quarterback Carson Schiller, who has completed 58% of his passes for 1,182 yards, 11 TDs and six interceptions. But the Cougars have been led offensively more on the ground and by senior Jackson Guetter, who has 142 carries for 1,243 yards and 10 TDs. When Guetter’s not getting the ball on the ground, he’s collecting passes from Schiller as he lead the team in receptions with 31 for 473 yards and two TDs.

Senior Thomas Dahmes has also been a big target for Schiller as he has 30 catches for 532 yards and five TDs.

Defensively, Stan Heiling has led the Cougars with 87 tackles and 2.5 sacks, while Guetter had 82 tackles, an interception and a sack, Dahmes has two interceptions and Kayse Haala has two interceptions.

GFW AT CLEVELAND, SECTION 2A

OCT. 25

When the Gibbon-Fairfax-Winthrop Firebirds opened play at their new football field on Sept. 19. also GFW’s Homecoming, they were tasked with taking on the unbeaten Cleveland Clippers. The Clippers finished that game with a 29-8 win and are still unbeaten to this day at 8-0 as they prepare for their first playoff game of the season when they host the fourth-seeded Firebirds in a Section 2A semifinals game Saturday.

The No. 1-seeded Clippers have been led by quarterback Carson Lyons, one of the bigger passing QBs the Firebirds have faced this season with the exception of Springfield’s Parker Kuehn in Week 8. Lyons didn’t play in the final week of the season due to an injured throwing hand, but junior Sam Ternes stepped in and completed 11 of 14 passes for 111 yards and three TDs to help the Clippers keep their undefeated season going with a 32-0 win over Martin County West on Oct. 15 in Cleveland.

GFW (5-4) has an almost polar opposite offense going with its Power-T run game, but it’s led to some success this season. Senior running back Garrett Stegeman leads the GFW offense with 109 carries for 780 yards and nine TDs, while Matthew Lee adds 93 carries for 630 yards and 10 TDs. While Firebirds QB Owen Swenson hasn’t thrown the ball much in any game this season, he’s been effective on the ground with 77 carries for 460 yards and five TDs.

Defensively the Firebirds have been led by senior defensive end Luke Bastian, who has 70 tackles, 45 solos, 14 tackles for a loss, one forced fumble and two fumble recoveries. Lee added 56 tackles and an interception, while senior linebacker José Farias Banda added 52 tackles, 35 solos, three sacks and two fumble recoveries. Cayson Gosewisch aids the Firebirds’ defense also with 48 tackles, 34 solos, one sack and three fumble recoveries.

GFW is averaging 29.1 ppg and allowing 16.8 ppg, while Cleveland is averaging 27.9 ppg and allowing just 5.2 ppg with four shutout wins.

Cleveland is 2-0 over the last two seasons against GFW after turning a 1-8 season in 2023 into a 6-4 season in 2024 and now 8-0 in 2025.