After posting its first postseason win since 2009, the United South Central football team ran into Minneota.

The Rebels gave the Vikings their second-closest game of the season but lost 48-7 Saturday in the Section 3A semifinals at Minneota.

Last year, Minneota went 13-1 and lost the Class AA state championship game 17-7 against Chatfield. This year, the No. 2-ranked Vikings dropped to Class A and have crushed their opponents, outscoring them 520-53.

Minneota took a 21-0 lead in the first quarter, but USC’s defense stepped up to hold the Vikings scoreless in the second quarter.

A 62-yard pass play from Luke Trio to Dallas Olson with 10:27 left in the third quarter broke Minneota’s streak of three straight shutouts. The extra point was good by Cedric Duerprisch, and the Rebels made it a two-possession game, 21-7.

However, Minneota matched USC’s score in the third quarter and added 20 points in the fourth quarter.

Although the Vikings outgained the Rebels 467-256 in yards of total offense, USC had the edge in passing yards. Luke Trio was 13-of-27 for 201 yards, and Nate Pederson was 2-of-2 for 27 yards.

Olson led USC’s receiving corps. with two catches for 113 yards, Nate Pederson had three grabs for 56 yards and Riley Kloos caught two passes for 31 yards.

Defensively, Kloos led the Rebels with nine tackles, including seven solo. Matt Harpestad added 7.5 tackles.

After starting the season 1-5, USC (3-7 overall) finished the season by winning half of its remaining games. To qualify for the section quarterfinals, the Rebels defeated Murray County Central 14-13 on Tuesday.

The next team in Minneota’s buzzsaw will be Adrian at 2:30 p.m. Friday at Southwest Minnesota State University. Adrian has an 8-2 record, but one of those losses was a 68-0 thrashing at Minneota on Oct. 15.