Argonauts defeat Redblacks for 3rd straight victory, increase lead in East Division

It wasn't perfect by any means, but the Toronto Argonauts did enough to hold off the Ottawa Redblacks and earn a 24-19 win Saturday afternoon.

In many ways, it was a tale of two halves as the Argos (7-5) dominated the first, while the Redblacks (3-9) tried to claw their way back in the second to the delight of the 21,673 Ottawa faithful before falling short. Ottawa has not won at home since Sept. 28, 2021 and are now 1-20 in their last 21 games at TD Place.

The victory gives the first-place Argos a four-point cushion over the second-place Montreal Alouettes (5-7). Toronto also snapped Ottawa's two-game winning streak.

Argos quarterback McLeod Bethel-Thompson finished the afternoon 27-of-39 passing for 365 yards to go with one touchdown and one interception. Ottawa counterpart Nick Arbuckle completed 26 of 40 passes for 290 yards and one interception.

Despite being solid for much of the game and outplaying Arbuckle in the first half, Bethel-Thompson admitted he'll lose sleep over the interception and an overthrown ball.

"I think it was a really good offensive performance, but those two throws are going to kind of hurt my heart and [I] won't sleep very well because of those two throws," he said. "This team has a really big backbone and the defence is awesome and special teams played lights out and we'll find a way to win games, which you've got to appreciate that."

WATCH | Argonauts survive late push from Redblacks in road win:

Ottawa defensive end Lorenzo Mauldin had two sacks to give him 12 on the season, tying Justin Capicciotti's 2015 single-season Redblacks record.

Mauldin admitted he's proud of the accomplishment, but football is not about celebrating individuals.

"Individuals can make plays, but if we don't make