Eastern played host to Ohio Valley Conference rival Jacksonville State on Saturday for Homecoming, edging the Gamecocks 31-28 in a back-and-forth game.

The Gamecocks got off to an early 14-0 lead after the first quarter, but 17-unanswered points had the Panthers taking a 17-14 lead in to the halftime break.

The Panthers struggled offensively in the opening half, totaling just 161 total yards, but an interception returned for a touchdown by junior defensive back Tavares Crawford tied the game at 14 and gave the Panthers momentum heading in to the second half.

It was the first interception returned for a touchdown by an Eastern player since the 2009 season.

Junior kicker Cameron Berra gave the Panthers a three-point advantage at the first half, converting on a 43-yard field goal as time expired to give Eastern a 17-14 lead.

In the second half, the Gamecocks scored on their first drive of the third quarter as running back Washaun Ealey did all the damage on the scoring drive, totaling 33 yards and a touchdown on five carries to give Jacksonville State a 21-17 lead.

Following Ealey’s second rushing touchdown of the game, the Panthers took a 24-21 lead on a five-yard rushing touchdown by red-shirt sophomore running back Taylor Duncan.

But, Jacksonville State answered back following a blocked punt as it once again turned to Ealey to do the majority of the damage.

Ealey capped off the scoring drive with his third touchdown of the game, pounding the ball across the goal line from six-yards out to give the Gamecocks a 28-24 lead.

The Homecoming matchup would see another second half lead change as junior quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo connected with senior wide receiver Chris Wright for the eventual game-winning 15-yard touchdown to take a 31-28 lead with 3:31 remaining in the game.

“We went with an empty set and I had a corner route,” Wright said. “The (defensive back) was playing me inside so I just set him up inside and broke outside. Jimmy (Garoppolo) saw it, and when I turned around Jim (Garoppolo) put it on the dot and we got in.”

Following the go ahead touchdown, the Gamecocks were moving the ball down field, but an interception by Eastern linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill gave Eastern the ball with a chance to run out the clock.

“The coverage we were in was the perfect play at the time,” Grugier-Hill said. “At first I was just spotting the quarterback and I didn’t realize that anyone was right next to me. I broke on it and I felt the wide receiver run in to me and it fell right in to his basket, but my hands were in perfect position and I just tore it out and went with it.”

Grugier-Hill returned the ball deep in to Gamecock territory, but a pair of failed running attempts and an interception had Jacksonville State taking over with a chance to lead a game-winning drive.

Taking over with 1 minute and 13 seconds remaining, the Gamecocks moved the ball to the Panthers 13-yard line, but a holding penalty moved the Gamecocks back to the 23-yard line with just seconds remaining.

On the last play, the Panther defense forced Jacksonville State quarterback Marques Ivory to scramble and throw blindly off his back foot.

The last-second pass was completed, but Eastern’s defense reacted quickly, tackling the receiver and keeping him in bounds to keep the clock ticking.

Following the completion, the Gamecocks scrambled to the line of scrimmage in an attempt to secure a last-second field goal to send the game to overtime, but the clock hit zero and gave the Panthers their first homecoming win since 2009.

“You really grow from games like this,” head coach Dino Babers said. “When you find a way to win tough games where everyone is pulling for each other and you are on an emotional rollercoaster and you do win, it builds character and it builds the stuff good teams are made of.”

With the win, the Panthers move to 4-3 overall and 3-1 in OVC play.

Eastern will return to action on Oct. 27 when it will travel to Richmond, Ky. to take on the Eastern Kentucky Colonels.

Jordan Pottorff can be reached at 581-2812 or jbpottorff@eiu.edu.