Grove City’s Ayden McKinstry was a menace with the ball against Hilliard Bradley as he and the Greyhounds outran the Jaguars 34-14. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless)
Ayden McKinstry amassed 190 total yards and scored three touchdowns as Grove City ran its record to 3-0 for the first time since 2001 with a win over defending regional champion Bradley.
Hilliard, OH – With all the space-age metrics and advanced scouting techniques used to break down virtually every sport these days, one pivotal factor remains mysteriously inexplicable: Momentum.
Try this one on for size. It took Grove City 17 minutes to pick up its initial first down in a nonleague game Friday night at Hilliard Bradley.
The Jaguars had dominated the Greyhounds in every way possible while taking a 7-0 lead into the third series of the second quarter. Grove City had gained all of 15 total yards. But then something clicked.
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Junior quarterback Carson Welsh swiftly marched the Greyhounds deep into Bradley territory with completions of 28 and 23 yards. Never mind that the drive ended with a blocked field. Grove City had turned the game dramatically on a dime.
“That’s just the way we are,” said Welsh, a first-year starter trying to fill the sizeable shoes of graduated second-team All-Ohioan Matthew Papas, who is now playing at Ohio University. “It’s hard to explain. We just came together. And when we get rolling, the sky’s the limit.”
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Welsh threw two touchdown passes and senior running back Ayden McKinstry rushed for 141 yards and three TDs as Grove City steamrolled defending regional champion Bradley 34-14 on a weird night that was delayed by a heavy pre-game downpour and ended in windy, chilly conditions. It was the first meeting ever between the schools.
On the first play after the blocked field goal, Gabriel Adrovet intercepted Bradley sophomore quarterback Declan O’Neil and the Greyhounds were off to the races. Eleven plays and 64 yards later, McKinstry scored from two yards to make it 7-all with 2:31 left in the half.
Grove City’s Carson Welsh looks to complete a pass over the middle against the Jaguars.
A decision by Bradley coach Mike LoParo to go for it on fourth-and-1 at his own 44 just before halftime backfired badly as an O’Neil pass was batted down.
Grove City needed just three plays to reach the end zone as Welsh hit Owen Steele on a fade play with 19.4 seconds left.
“We got off to a really slow start offensively, but we know what we’re capable of doing when we’re on the same page and not making mistakes,” Greyhounds coach Greg Waits said. “We righted the ship, established ourselves from a physical standpoint and took the game over defensively. Carson did a nice job making some plays and Ayden just took over.”
Parker Toadvine gets above a Bradley defender for a reception during Grove City’s 34-14 win over the Jaguars.
Parker Toadvine made a spectacular one-handed grab in the end zone for a 20-yard TD on Grove City’s opening series of the third quarter.
Bradley gave itself a chance on special teams. Jayden Keeney returned a blocked punt 10 yards for a score to cut the deficit to 20-14.
But on the next play, McKinstry raced 65 yards up the middle before being dragged down from behind by Toledo-bound Terris Dudley. McKinstry scored from five yards out on the next play. He added a 1-yard score on a fourth-and-goal midway through the fourth to seal the deal.
McKinstry rushed for 141 yards and added 49 yards on four receptions.
Declan O’Neil scrambles to evade Zachary Merz (28). He was pressured all night long by a stingy Greyhound defense, resulting in 4 interceptions.
“On the long run, I noticed that their safety was gone, and once I hit the hole, I had the whole field ahead of me,” McKinstry said. “It did take us a while to get into a groove tonight, but when we did, we really took off. Our defense deserves a lot of credit. They got a lot of turnovers and gave us those opportunities.”
Welsh completed 15 of 25 passes for 161 yards and was not intercepted.
“I knew last year, Carson was going to be pretty good,” Waits said. “He learned a lot about our offense by studying Matthew and he really worked his butt off in the offseason. He has risen to the challenge.”
By contrast, O’Neil had a rocky outing, completing just 9 of 26 passes for 89 yards with a touchdown (a 20-yarder to Cy Myers) and four interceptions. Like Welsh, O’Neil is succeeding a Bradley legend in first-team All-Ohioan and Mr. Football finalist Bradyn Fleharty. Now a freshman at Yale, Fleharty missed Bradley’s state semifinal defeat to eventual champion Lakewood St. Edward with a badly sprained ankle and O’Neil made his debut.
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“That was a really sloppy effort all-around tonight,” LoParo said as the Jaguars fell to 1-2. “We had the momentum, but a few things here and there caused it to turn and Grove City took it from us. It’s hard to describe it, really. Their kids were just making plays.”
Greyhound defenders Carson Rutledge (18) Mitch Merz (20) and Cooper Sayre (27) swarm to the ball and smother Bradley’s Jordan Reed-Davis.
Grove City moved to 3-0 for the first time since 2001. The Greyhounds started 4-1 in 2022 and 2023 before faltering. They did win their first playoff game in two decades last November against long-time nemesis Hilliard Davidson before dropping a 48-42 heartbreaker to top-seeded, undefeated Gahanna, setting the table for the strong start this fall.
“I realize we graduated some all-state players, but this start doesn’t surprise us at all,” McKinstry said. “We’ve got a long way to go yet, but we think we have the potential to have a really good team.”
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