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DILLON, Mont. – The Eastern Oregon University football team defeated the University of Montana Western, 29-13, behind 231 all-purpose yards from Kevin Sampson.

The junior running back carried the ball 27 times for 137 yards, and ran for a score. He also caught a team-high eight passes for 94 yards. Sampson made a pivotal play on special teams when he had a timely blocked punt late in the third quarter go out of the Western endzone for a safety.

Chris Ware threw for 214 yards and completed 21 of his 37 pass attempts for Eastern (2-3) (2-2). The junior quarterback threw two interceptions and no touchdowns. He carried the ball 11 times for 65 yards.

The Mountaineers racked up a season high 266 yards rushing, and finished the game with 474 yards of offense. Eastern came into the contest with a Frontier Conference high average of 155 yards on the ground per game, and the Bulldogs average a league low, 76 rushing yards per game. The EOU defense held Montana Western to 39 yards rushing Saturday.

Charlie Dotson and Jeff Logan each gained 31 yards on the ground to lead UMW. Logan was 21 for 28 passing for 219 yards through the air. The sophomore threw two touchdown passes and no interceptions. Colton Woods led the Bulldogs with 11 catches for 119 yards.

Eastern finished the game with 33 first downs compared to Western's 17. The Mountaineers committed eight penalties for 82 yards, and UMW was penalized for 50 yards with five penalties. EOU was 12 of 19 on third down plays, while the Bulldogs converted on three for 13. Montana Western did possess the ball for 41:34 and Eastern had it for 35:37.

The Mountaineers travel to Billings, Mont. next Saturday to face Rocky Mountain College (2-3) (2-2). The Battlin' Bears defeated Montana State University-Northern at home Saturday, 34-17. Next Saturday's kickoff is scheduled for noon Pacific Time and will have live audio on 104.7 FM KCMB and will be broadcast worldwide on EOUSports.com.