Lewis Ward made a 46-yard precision kick on the last play of regulation Sunday night and the Ottawa Redblacks defeated the Hamilton Tiger-Cats 24-22.
For the Red and Blacks (2-1), this is their first home victory against a rival from the Eastern Division of the Canadian Football League since a 24-9 victory against the Toronto Argonauts on November 2, 2018.
The Red and Black also ended a 10-game losing streak against the Tiger-Cats (0-4).
The score was 22-21 in favor of the Ticats with a half-minute left on the clock after quarterback Bo Levi Mitchell (30-for-45, 322 yards and two touchdowns) led an offensive drive that ended with a four-yard touchdown pass to Shemar Bridges.
But the Red and Black managed to get into position for a decisive placement from Ward, who succeeded in each of his four attempts in the match.
With less than four minutes to play, DeVonte Dedmon, who made his presence felt throughout the game, returned a punt 30 yards to put the Redblacks at the Tiger-Cats 54-yard line.
Two productive runs from Ryquell Armstead allowed the Rouge et Noir to reach the 15-yard line.
Quarterback Dru Brown then found Justin Hardy in the end zone for a touchdown, but the Redblacks missed the two-point conversion, giving them a lead of just five points, 21-16.
Brown had a good game, completing 24 passes in 39 attempts for 265 yards and a touchdown.
The Tiger-Cats started the second half with field goals of 35 and 42 yards from Marc Liegghio to give themselves a 16-12 lead.
The Red and Blacks cut that lead to just one point on a 42-yard field goal from Ward with just over 11 minutes left in the fourth quarter.
