The Alouettes begin a campaign with four wins for the first time since 2009. They also signed a ninth victory in a row this season, a new record in the history of the organization.
Tyson Philpot, Cole Spieker and Caleb Evans scored touchdowns for the Alouettes. Kicker David Côté made three field goals in the victory.
Cody Fajardo completed 33 of 41 passes for 284 yards and a touchdown. He temporarily left the game in the first half when he hit his head on the ground, but returned to the game afterward. He took the opportunity to reach the milestone of 16,000 yards in the Canadian Football League (CFL).
Lirim Hajrullahu scored 12 points for the Argonauts with four field goals. Makai Polk reached the end zone. The Toronto club was notably hampered by its indiscipline, receiving 11 penalties for 120 yards, while the Sparrows were punished five times for 65 yards,
Argonauts quarterback Cameron Dukes was limited to 22 of 33 carries for 199 yards. It was the first loss in three games for his team this season, which had scored nine offensive touchdowns and 74 points in its first two games.
The Alouettes will return to action on July 6 against the Calgary Stampeders at Percival Molson Stadium.
The first points at the Argos
The Alouettes were put in an unfamiliar situation in the first quarter when Hajrullahu made a 26-yard field goal to allow the Argonauts to open the scoring.
It was the first time this season that the Alouettes conceded the first points of a match. They hadn’t trailed since the first part of the campaign, against the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Philpot, however, made sure to remedy the situation with a 38-yard aerial touchdown before the end of the first quarter. It was his fourth major of the campaign.
Hajrullahu cut the deficit with his second field goal of the game with eight seconds left in the first quarter, but Côté answered with a 38-yard field goal between the posts with just over five minutes left in the first half.
Côté allowed the Alouettes to retreat to the locker room with a seven-point lead with a second field goal with six seconds left, this time from 10 yards out. James Letcher Jr. had started the sequence with a 43-yard punt return.
Côté started the second half as he finished the first with another 21-yard field goal on the Sparrows’ first possession. Hajrullahu cut the deficit to one possession with a three-pointer on a 40-yard kick.
Spieker then dealt the Argonauts a blow with a 44-yard touchdown run on third down and one. The Argonauts’ defense was caught off guard when it looked like the visitors were going for a quarterback sneak. Evans completed the touchdown pass.
Jeshrun Antwi had previously made the now-famous one-yard kick for a first down on third down and 20.
Another Hajrullahu field goal narrowed the gap, then Jonathan Edouard intercepted in the end zone as Fajardo tried to connect with Philpot. Once again, the Montreal defense limited the damage by forcing a punt after just two plays.
After suffering the first two turnovers — the first on a third down — the Alouettes managed a first in the fourth quarter when Dionte Ruffin intercepted a Dukes pass with 8:28 left.
The streak ended in the end zone when Evans sneaked to the goal line on his second attempt.
