CHARLESTON, W.Va. - - Charleston scored 17 unanswered points to claim a 17-10 victory over UVa-Wise in the season finale for both schools Thursday. The Golden Eagles claimed victory despite finishing with negative 30 rushing yards in the contest.

UVa-Wise (6-5, 5-5 MEC) used a wildcat formation to perfection early in the contest to jump out to a 10-0 lead. Junior Carlton Griffith got the Cavaliers on the board when he capped a 7-play, 68-yard drive with a 13-yard touchdown scamper. The TD was setup in large part due to a 30-yard pass completion from Brycen Lee to senior Skylar Brownlow.

Charleston (3-8, 3-7 MEC) fell behind by two scores when Trent Martin connected on a 37-yard field goal with 7:26 to play in the opening half. The field goal finished off a 14-play, 44-yard drive that consumed nearly six minutes of clock.

The Golden Eagles entered halftime with just 55 offensive yards on 30 plays. By comparison, the Cavaliers claimed 223 first half yards as Griffith gained 78 of his 84 rushing yards in the opening 30 minutes.

While the UVa-Wise defense remained up to the task in the second half, the offensive sputtered.

The Cavs posted just 23 offensive yards in the second half as the Golden Eagles claimed eight sacks in the come from behind triumph.

Pat Kirkland's squad got back in the game with a defensive score. TJ Matrascia scooped up a fumble and raced eight yards for the TD, Brett Benes' extra point made the score 10-7 with 10:42 to play in the third period.

The schools would exchange punts for the rest of the quarter. Overall, UVa-Wise limited Charleston to nine first downs in addition to their season-best performance yardage performance.

Charleston would eventually turn the tide thanks to a short field. The Golden Eagles would take over on the Cavs' 30-yard line after a short punt. Backup quarterback Brant Grissel would complete a trio of passes, including a 34-yard pass to D'Andre Brooks on what proved to be the game-winning scoring drive.

Marvin Elam would put Charleston in front when he scored from three yards out. The PAT kick made the score 17-10.

The Cavaliers would have three more possessions in the game but would fail to pick up a first down on any of the drives, allowing the Golden Eagles to salt the game away.

Freshman Buster Henderson led UVa-Wise with 11 tackles. Seniors Chris Flood (8) and Zachary Blair (6) finished their collegiate careers with strong tackle performances. Blair had three tackles for loss as part of his six tackle performance to finish with 80.5 for his career, a NCAA Division II record.

The six wins claimed by the Cavs mark the most by the program since 2008 and mark a five win improvement from the 2015 campaign.