With 38 seconds left to play and 83 yards to the end zone, the Northern Arizona offense stepped onto the field at the Walkup Skydome with one final hope: To drive down the field and score a touchdown and 2-point conversion to force overtime against defending FCS champion Eastern Washington University.

Five passing plays later, NAU sat within striking distance, but Lumberjacks' quarterback Cary Grossart was sacked and the Eagles pulled off a 36-28 Big Sky Conference win Saturday.

"We work on (that situation) in practice every week and we came in knowing what we had to do: Execute and do the best we could getting the ball up-field, getting it out of bounds and try to save some time to win the game," senior wide receiver Khalil Paden said.

The loss dropped NAU to 2-3 overall and 1-2 in the Big Sky, while the Eagles improved to 2-4, 2-2.

"It was a difficult game to finish the way we did in the fourth quarter," Jacks' head coach Jerome Souers said. "Eastern Washington made the plays when they needed to, when they counted. We had too many turnovers and missed opportunities."

Souers said he was proud of his team for not giving up and for putting themselves in a position to win, after considering that the Lumberjacks controlled the game in the first half and went into the third quarter with a 21-20 lead.

Souers also added that turnovers were a main part of the demise of the Lumberjacks on Saturday.

"The turnovers are unfortunate," he said. "Not getting the points on the field goal and fumbling on the 3-yard line. Those are tough. We needed to have better ball security."

Souers was talking about a 46-yard Matt Myers field goal that was called back on a holding penalty, and a Zach Bauman fumble deep in the Jacks' territory in the third quarter.

The Jacks also missed another 26-yard field goal, had a fumbled punt return by Randy Hale Jr., a fumble by Daniel Alder and an interception in the end zone on a Grossart pass late in the game.

Grossart was flushed out of the pocket and threw at Dejzon Walker -- who had been open -- between double coverage for the pick.

Grossart said the play was one he makes nine out of 10 times, just not Saturday.

"It was a broken play and I feel really comfortable on a scramble like that," he said. "I saw it and thought 'I'm going to throw this for a touchdown,' but I just didn't make the throw."

Souers said Grossart continues to improve -- he was 31-for-38 with two touch downs and 355 yards -- and that he puts the team in the position to win games.

"Cary played with great courage today. He's a fine quarterback, but he's human," Souers said.

Paden, who led NAU's receivers with 105 yards on nine catches, said that he has a good relationship with Grossart on the field.

"When it's my turn, it's my opportunity, I'm going to try to make plays and we're going to keep on working," he said. "We knew there were some spots in their defense that we could take advantage of and we did that."

The Jacks' passing game was the perfect compliment to balance the run attack, which went for 126 yards, led by Bauman who rushed 23 times for 109 yards.

"We wanted to keep them off balance and throw as much as we ran," Souers said. "We had opportunities where we didn't convert, and we made some really great plays. It's all about 11 guys staying on the same page every play.

"I think we have an explosive offense with the ability to run and throw," Souers added.

Paden added that the games when the team has beaten itself have been the toughest to stomach.

"I think we did an excellent job, we just made too many little mistakes and we beat ourselves," he said.

The Eagles' defense got four turnovers, and the offense cashed in on them on the scoreboard turning Bauman's fumble into a touchdown, Hale's dropped fair catch into a field goal and Grossart's pick into an offensive drive that killed precious time NAU needed in its final drive, but the team still remains positive.

"We're right there and we can't panic and can't lose hope," Souers said. "We have to lean on our resiliency and the character of our team and our program." Paden said the loss will motivate the team to work harder, while Grossart -- the offensive leader -- said it's important to focus on the good things.

"It's important to get the guys going and remind them that we played great all game. You gotta just keep coming back hungry," he said.

NAU hits the road this week to play at Montana State.

Bill Harris can be reached at bharris@azdailysun.com or 556-2251.