Grey Kegley and the Lions took care of business against Grove City, amassing nearly 600 yards of total offense. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Logan Gapen)
The Lions powered their way to 375 yards rushing and a 44-20 victory that sets up a league-championship matchup next Friday against Pickerington North.
Grove City, OH – Heading into this season coming off one of its greatest three-year runs in program history, Gahanna Lincoln split its first four games and bided its time while a new group of skilled players settled in.
With a pair of three-year senior starters on the offensive line in left tackle Luke Collins and right guard Alex Marcum to lean on, players like sophomore running back Leon Cummings and junior quarterback Grey Kegley have the Lions back among the area’s best with the regular season winding down once again.
Huffer Chiropractic can help your athlete perform at their best – with offices in Osgood, Jackson Center, and Dublin, Ohio.
On Friday night at Grove City, Gahanna dominated particularly up front and produced a 44-20 victory that sets it up to battle Pickerington North next week for the Ohio Capital Conference Ohio Division championship.
“We had a little bit of a rough first half, but the second half was Gahanna football getting 10 yards a pop and just playing really well, getting nasty,” said Collins, who is committed to Cincinnati. “Our right guard, Alex Marcum, just loves football and is such a good player. Honestly it’s really the key to our offense and our team that we run the ball well, get a push up front, and pass-protect well. That’s been the key to our success for years. The trench mob is how we play up front.”
Veteran central Ohio columnist Jarrod Ulrey writes the OCC and sports at large for Press Pros
After losing current West Virginia running back and 2024 graduate Diore Hubbard and current Kentucky freshman quarterback and 2025 graduate Brennen Ward from a program that went 34-6 with seven playoff wins over the last three seasons, the Lions regrouped behind a four-running back rotation this fall.
Cummings was the ringleader against the Dawgs, rushing 13 times for 145 yards and one touchdown, and senior running back Trey Wilson added 10 rushes for 132 yards as the Lions produced 375 yards on the ground and 545 total yards.
The win improves Gahanna to 7-2 overall and 4-0 in the league, with a matchup at home against Pickerington North – which is 8-1 overall and 4-0 in the league – putting the title and possibly a first-round playoff bye in Division I, Region 3 on the line.
Marshawn Lee-Gaines celebrates after a big sack on Grove City quarterback Carson Welsh.
“Regardless of the year, that’s got to always be your goal, to win the conference,” said Bruce Ward, who has gone 89-46 in 12 seasons as the Lions’ coach. “We’ve made strides throughout the year to get better. We didn’t play our best today.
“We’re big up front. The run is our thing. We try to do other things obviously, but we have the advantage in the box and we wanted to establish the run and control the line up front. Our offensive line is pretty experienced, but even though some of our guys are older, some of them are not as experienced. We’ve had some talent the last several years and are having some seniors step up for the first time. It took us a while to jell, but we’ve just got to keep it clean.”
Cummings rushed for a 32-yard touchdown with 7 minutes, 35 seconds left in the first quarter for a 7-0 lead, but Grove City tied it at 7 on an 80-yard touchdown pass from senior quarterback Carson Welsh to senior wide receiver Owen Steele with 10:27 to go before halftime.
Want a greener, healthier lawn? We can help. contact Weedman USA at 614-733-3747 or go online to Weedman.com.
Grove City’s Gabe Adrovet upends Gahanna’s Trey Wilson.
After Kegley completed a 5-yard touchdown pass to junior tight end Jayden Elston with 7:18 to go in the second quarter, Grove City’s Jake Curcillo blocked a punt and Brieon Savage picked it up at the Gahanna 17 two drives later.
On the second play of the ensuing possession, Welsh hit Steele for a 16-yard touchdown to tie it at 14.
Grove City trailed 17-14 at the half before Gahanna seized control over the final two quarters.
“We’ve got a great group of kids that work hard every single day, but we’ve had a ton of injuries that have caught up with us,” said Dawgs coach Greg Waits, whose team is 4-5 overall and 1-3 in the league heading into its regular-season finale next Friday at Central Crossing. “The two best teams in our league, Pickerington North and Gahannna, we played toe-to-toe with in the first half.
“Gahanna’s well-coached and has got some super athletes. Owen Steele, our receiver, I think is one of the best receivers in central Ohio. He did the same thing against Pickerington North, and that says an awful lot about him.”
The Dave Arbogast family of dealerships is the official transportation source for Press Pros Magazine.com.
With 9:56 left in the third quarter, Wilson rushed for a 73-yard touchdown to make it 24-14.
Kegley then hooked up again with Elston, this time for a 16-yard touchdown with 3:39 to go in the third for a 31-14 lead.
“Getting those two touchdowns helped us win the game,” said Elston, who entered the game with three catches on the season. “I haven’t had a whole lot of (receptions) this year, so it felt good to contribute and get on the scoreboard. Once we get it going, our run game was doing well and our pass game got rolling.”
Grove City’s Eric Alvarez hauls down Gabriel Komrabai-Kanu, but the Lions’ offense proved too much in the second half.
Cummings, who is listed at 5-foot-10, 190 pounds, also contributed at linebacker for a defense that held Grove City to 73 yards rushing.
With 1:17 to go in the third quarter, Cummings forced a fumble and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown to give the Lions a 37-14 advantage.
Junior running back Kellen Rachal rounded out Gahanna’s scoring with a 1-yard touchdown run with one minute remaining.
“We bounced back from some losses and didn’t let it stop our year,” Cummings said. “We just put our heads down and we’re not worried about what happens next week.
“I know I’m strong. I may not be the biggest guy, but I’ve got that power and I can’t let them take me down. We have a four-back system (that also includes senior Gabriel Komrabai-Kanu along with Rachal and Wilson), so everybody has to be prepared for us.”
Kegley finished 15-for-26 passing for 170 yards for the Lions, whose only losses were to Pickerington Central (45-14 on Aug. 22) and Olentangy Orange (35-21 on Sept. 12). They’ve won five in a row since then while Orange and Central are the top two teams in computer points in Region 3.
“(Cummings) is one of our most physical players, and he’s only a sophomore so he still has a lot to learn, but he’s a ball player,” coach Ward said. “He’s one of our pound-for-pound best football players. We have multiple backs we can use, and they’re all different styles of backs that have all had success throughout the year. Our defense has gotten better every week. Our job is to make sure we’re fighting for the OCC title week 10, and we know we’ve got our work cut out for us.”
Logan Services, in Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, proudly sponsors the best area sports coverage on Press Pros Magazine.