KALAMAZOO, Mich. -- The Western Michigan football team secured bowl eligibility after a 17-13 win over defending Mid-American Conference Champions Ohio at Stafford-Smith Field at Waldo Stadium on Tuesday night.

After being held to just three points in the first half, the Broncos (6-4, 5-1 MAC) rallied from a four-point deficit to score a touchdown in the third quarter and the fourth quarter for their third win this season when trailing at the half.

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Broc Lowry finished with 126 yards passing and 92 yards rushing, with one touchdown. Jalen Buckley rushed for 82 yards on 14 carries and had a touchdown, while Tailique Williams led all receivers with 71 yards on one game-breaking catch.

WMU's defense held the Bobcats to just 70 yards through the air thanks to four pass breakups and one interception. Junior cornerback Joshua Franklin had five tackles and two pass breakups. Graduate transfer linebacker James Camden had a team-high 10 tackles with a half sack. Tate Hallock had three tackles, an interception and a pass breakup.

Ohio opened the game with the ball and quickly drove into WMU territory after Sieh Bangura rushed for 26 yards on the opening play of the game. After an off sides penalty on the Broncos gave OU a first down at the WMU 39, quarterback Parker Navarro was brought down after scrambling for a yard. On the next play Hallock stepped in front of MAC-leading receiver Chase Hendricks and picked off Navarro, returning it 37 yards to the OU 33. After three straight rushes, WMU settled for a field goal and Palmer Domschke nailed a 46-yard field goal to take an early 3-0 lead.

Later in the first quarter, Ohio responded with two-yard touchdown run by Navarro.

After a scoreless second quarter, Western Michigan started the third with the ball and quickly marched down the field thanks to the legs of Buckley, who had 41 yards on the ground on the drive. Lowry capped it off with his ninth rushing touchdown of the season to give WMU its first lead of the game at 10-7.

The Bobcats responded again, this time with a 17-play drive that ate of 10:08 of the clock and took the game into the fourth quarter, where Bangura scored on a three-yard touchdown run. Ohio kicker David Dellenbach missed the extra point, giving Ohio a 13-10 lead with 14:55 to play.

After a fair catch on the ensuing kickoff, the Broncos started on their 25. Buckley rushed for a yard to open the drive. On the next play, Lowry passed it out to Williams in the right flat. Williams broke several tackles and then cut back across the field and took the ball 71 yards down to the OU three. Buckley ran it in from three yards to give WMU the lead back, 17-13.

From there, WMU's defense shut down the Bobcats to secure the victory.

Western Michigan heads on the road next week to take on Northern Illinois on Tuesday. The game can be watched live at 7 p.m. on ESPN2.