HAVRE, Mont. -- After trailing 20-0 in the second quarter, the Eastern Oregon University football team went on a 37-0 run to defeat Montana State-Northern, 37-20.

The No. 23 Mountaineers won for the first time in six tries at MSUN. The victory also marks only the third time EOU (7-3) (7-2) has won seven games in a season in the program's 80-year history. The last time Eastern won seven games was 29 years ago, when the Mountaineers set a school record with eight wins.

"This was a tale of two halves," Eastern Oregon head coach Tim Camp said. "Our kids played not to get beat in the first half. As coaches we challenged them. They responded. We almost let one slip away. This was a sign of a quality team. It was a nice win for our team in conference play. I'm so proud of these players and our coaches. They deserve the credit. We are very fortunate to have these coaches and players here at EOU."

After the Mountaineers forced six turnovers in a 45-14 win over the Lights in La Grande on Sept. 26, EOU recovered two fumbles and intercepted four MSUN passes Saturday. The Eastern defense was led by Corey Dunn and Jeff McNally, each finished with nine tackles.

Northern took a 20-0 lead just into the second quarter when Eastern Oregon got on the board with a touchdown. Thomas Akers began the scoring in the second half with a ten-yard field goal. Ten Minutes later the Mountaineers' got a score from a 51-yard pass from Chris Ware to Mike Corral to make the score, 20-16.

Forty-four seconds into the final quarter EOU took its first lead with a two-yard touchdown run from Joel Haran. Ware connected with Kirk Miller and Rick Copsey over a minute span with 8:52 and 7:34 remaining in regulation. Miller's touchdown reception was 14 yards, and Copsey's catch went for 41 yards.

Eastern Oregon finished with 449 yards of total offense, 164 yards rushing and 285 passing. Ware was 14 for 35 for 248 yards with three touchdowns and two interceptions. The Lights' (2-7) (1-7) Jeff Van Nest ended the game 12 for 35 for 175 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions. Haran finished with 83 yards on the ground on 12 carries.

The victory sets up a big clash to end the regular season with No. 2 Carroll College (10-0) (8-0) in La Grande next Saturday. The game will kickoff at noon PT from Community Stadium. It will be Senior Day for the Mountaineers and have playoff implications.