Levi Davis hurt the Bears with his arm and his legs as Olentangy Orange pummeled OCC rival Berlin 35-7. (Press Pros Feature Photos by Brian Bayless)
Treyton Schroeder made three interceptions and a fumble recovery to lead an opportunistic defense, while Levi Davis and Terryn Thomas offered the fireworks on offense as Orange delivered a statement win over Berlin.
Lewis Center, OH – First-year Olentangy Orange coach Wes Schroeder admitted that it’s been “kind of weird” spending Friday nights this fall on the sideline watching his nephew, 5-foot-9 ball-hawking junior cornerback Treyton Schroeder, in action for the first time. He coached at Granville the previous four seasons.
Except on highlight reels, Wes never got to watch Treyton’s accomplishments in 2023, when he made seven interceptions and earned third-team All-Ohio.
The veteran coach no doubt will have a blast watching and re-watching the film from Orange’s 35-7 non-league win over intra-district rival Olentangy Berlin Friday. It marked the Pioneers’ first victory against the Bears after losses of 31-24, 17-0 and 31-24 the previous three seasons.
Veteran central Ohio columnist Steve Blackledge writes the OCC and sports at large for Press Pros.
He will see a game for the ages turned in by Treyton, who intercepted Aiden Eviston three times. recovered a fumble and made two pass breakups. With a season-and-a-half remaining in orange and blue, Schroeder already owns the Orange career mark in interceptions with 12.
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The diminutive defensive back was getting the star treatment on the field afterwards, and rightfully so, after the performance as young Pioneers fans were requesting everything from wrist bands to tape.
“It was nice to finally beat these guys,” he said. “We game-planned toward their tendencies and came up with some big plays on defense. Our energy was soaring tonight and, coming of a loss last week (31-21 to Gahanna) and heading into a rivalry game we were super focused and motivated to come out on top.”
Treyton Schroeder was a one-man wrecking crew in the secondary, racking up three interceptions against Berlin.
All told, Orange (4-1) feasted on five turnovers by Berlin (3-2), which has a well-earned reputation for fundamental prowess and lack of mistakes.
“I say this with all the sincerity in the world: That (Berlin) staff over there is one of the best in central Ohio,” Wes Schroeder said. “I learned this from my two years (as assistant) at Olentangy Liberty that these intra-district games are different. If you look at the history, so many times teams have come from way back to win and sometimes the team that’s not supposed to win ends up on top.
“I told the kids that blowing a two-score lead to Gahanna last week might have been just what we needed. Maybe they were trying to cheat the process a little. Whatever the case. We really took it to heart and executed the way the way we’re capable of tonight.”
Coming off a 4-7 campaign, Orange made an eye-opening statement heading into play in the Ohio Capital Conference’s rugged Central Division that includes perennial powers Hilliard Davidson, Olentangy Liberty, Dublin Coffman and Upper Arlington to name a few.
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Junior quarterback Levi Davis also had an impressive night, completing 10 of 14 passes for 140 yards and three touchdowns. He also rushed for 75 yards and a TDS on 15 carries. Davis’ favorite target was 6-5 receiver Terryn Thomas, who made seven catches for 105 yards, including TDs of 3 and 57 yards.
Will Musgrove steals what would have been a TD reception from Ethan Radar, manages to stay in bounds, and advances the ball out of the endzone in a backbreaking defensive play.
“Me and Terryn have been best friends on and off the field since we were five years old,” Davis said. “Berlin has a great defense, but we went in with the idea of taking what they gave us. Getting the lead really helped us and our defense couldn’t possibly have done any more. Man, Treyton sure did have a great game.”
Of Davis, who owns several Division I offers and also plays point guard on the basketball team that reached a regional final last March, Wes Schroeder said: “He’s a special, special player. What Levi does with his legs, you just can’t replicate. The threat really puts defenses in a bind.”
Treyton Schroeder’s counterpart on the opposite side of the defense, senior corner Will Musgrove, made perhaps the pivotal play of the game.
Midway through the third quarter with Orange leading 21-7, Eviston launched a bomb to the back corner of the end zone to Ethan Rader, who appeared to come down with a spectacular catch. But Musgrove ripped the ball away, managing to keep a foot in bounds, then returned the pick 35 yards. That led to an Orange score that put the game away.
“He ran a post to the corner, and I knew I had to get on top of it,” Musgrove said. “I think the ball came down on top of his head and he was struggling to secure it when I came in and stole it.”
That marked Musgrove’s ninth career interception.
“I think you’d have a have a hard time finding two corners better than those guys,” said Wes Schroeder, who welcomed a fifth child – all of them girls – into the fold a week ago.
Terryn Thomas hauls in one of his two TD passes on the night.
The intra-district rivalry – Berlin beat Olentangy Liberty 22-21 the previous week – always thickens the plot.
“Of course, we’re going to be ready for a rivalry game like this,” Treyton Schroeder said. “There was some trash talk in the community and we felt a little disrespected. Typical stuff.”
Musgrove really heard it. His girlfriend attends Berlin and they went to a school dance together there the previous weekend. He got the razzing he expected.
But who did his girlfriend root for Friday night?
“I don’t know. That’s a good question,” he said. “You’d better ask her.”
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