Falvo’s game-ending field goal lifts Gee-Gees past Windsor Lancers

OTTAWA, On. – It came down to the wire in a back and forth contest with huge playoff implication, as senior kicker Matt Falvo’s last second 11 yard field goal lifted the Ottawa Gee-Gees past the Windsor Lancers. The game saw six lead changes and a plethora of huge plays.

Despite relatively few penalties, the game was a chippy affair as both teams played with passion, recognizing the playoff implications of the tilt at Frank Clair Stadium. The Lancers shocked the squad from the capital and silenced the crowd when they jumped to a 7-0 lead at 13:53 of the first. The score came on a fumble recovery in the endzone after a series of miscues that began with a special teams blunder that had the Ottawa offense start on their own one-yard-line, and finished with a high-snap into their own enzone. The Lancers continued their dominance of the opening frame at increased their lead to fourteen points on a one-yard QB sneak by Austin Kennedy (17/27 for 270 yards and 2 touchdowns), a play that capped a five, play 53-yard drive.

The Gee-Gees offense began to click in the second quarter as they took advantage of great field position with a couple field-goals by Falvo (from 38, 21) to start the quarter, and a couple touchdowns to finish the half. Both majors were scored by Ottawa running back Brendan Gillanders who immerged as a lethal all-purpose threat and leader on the team on Saturday. The Orleans native racked up 239 total yards of offense and three touchdowns (1 rushing, 2 receiving) on the day.

The third quarter saw more lead changes as the teams exchanged long passing touchdowns. Kennedy found receiver Evan Pszczonak (4 catches for 130 yards and 2 touchdowns) for a 40 yard major while Gillanders turned a short gain into a 33 yard touchdown reception from QB Aaron Colbon (21-34, 326 yards and 3 touchdowns). Both teams were exposed on the big plays as a result of aggressive play by both squads’ defences.

Big hits were the tale of the second half with both defenses laying devastating blows. The Gee-Gees looked to have secured a multi-score lead after a 62-yard drive, but a fumble by the otherwise impressive Ottawa running back Franck Ngandui (9 carries for 69 yards) in the endzone saw the Gee-Gees come out of the redzone with no points. This blunder looked to be devastating when Kennedy found Pszczonak again, who took advantage of a defensive miscue and dashed to the endzone for 77 yard touchdown to take a 30-29 lead with 7:35 left in the fourth quarter.

Gillanders carried the ball nine times on the thirteen-play drive (including three successful third-down conversions) to bring the Gee-Gees within the normal range of Falvo’s leg. On a day that saw gusts up to 55km/h, the headwinds proved too much for Falvo as he missed just short and slightly left. The Ottawa defense was issued with a challenge; come up with a two and out or lose the game. Linebacker Tyler Sawyer rose to the challenge and was in on both tackles as Coach McDiarmid’s defense came through and got their squad the ball back with 1:13 left in the game. Colbon took control as he took advantage of brilliant play calling and drove 62 yards down to the Lancers 4-yard-line. Falvo took advantage of his second opportunity to win the game and his 11-yard field-goal as the clock expired gave the Gee-Gees a 32-30 win.

Head coach J.P. Asselin was happy with his team’s effort to repeatedly come from behind; “I’m very happy with our resiliency. We kept fighting and never got down on ourselves. Down the road we’re going to be in games like this, so that’s key.” He also recognized the effort of his running back “All season he [Gillanders] has been huge for us. He’s a leader. He does everything right and he’s a complete back. From running the ball to blocking to playing receiver, he’s an all-round player and had a great game today.”

The Gee-Gees will now travel to McMaster (6-1) next weekend for the Saturday game that will decide second place in the OUA. Windsor heads to Toronto to face York (1-6).

NOTES: -Falvo is now tied with Ara Tchobanian for career field goals made at 54.
-Gillanders is in the national top 10 in carries, yards, yards per game and touchdowns.