PROVIDENCE, R.I. — In a thrilling Ivy League matchup, Caleb Sanchez led the Columbia Lions to a 21-12 victory over the Brown Bears on Saturday thanks to his impressive three touchdown passes, including two long strikes to Bryson Canty.

The Lions opened the scoring in the closing moments of the second quarter with a spectacular 55-yard touchdown pass from Sanchez to Canty, granting them a narrow 7-3 lead at halftime.

In the third quarter, Sanchez continued to excel, connecting on a 12-yard touchdown throw to Jordan Kelley. He then extended the lead further with a 52-yard bomb to Canty early in the final quarter, pushing the score to 21-3 in favor of Columbia (6-3, 4-2 Ivy League).

Despite the significant deficit, Brown (3-6, 2-4 Ivy League) fought back. Christopher Maron converted his second field goal of the game, and quarterback Jake Willcox capped off the comeback attempt with a short touchdown pass to Ty Pezza.

Sanchez completed 12 of his 27 passing attempts, accumulating a total of 241 yards, with three touchdowns, of which 119 yards came from touchdown throws. Canty emerged as the standout receiver for Columbia, catching six passes for 183 yards, marking a career high for him and adding to his impressive tally of three games this season with over 100 receiving yards.

On the opposing side, Willcox recorded a solid performance, passing for 242 yards, with 12 of those completions going to Mark Mahoney, who racked up 120 receiving yards.