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GREENVILLE -- N.C. State finally gave coach Tom O'Brien a reason to smile.

Daniel Evans threw for 335 yards and three touchdowns, and the Wolfpack built a 21-point first-half lead before holding on to beat East Carolina 34-20 on Saturday night -- a much-needed win for a program that had seen so little go right this season.

Jamelle Eugene, John Dunlap and Darrell Davis made scoring catches for the Wolfpack (2-5), who beat a team from the NCAA's top division for the first time in more than a year. J.C. Neal also returned a blocked punt for a touchdown as N.C. State ended an eight-game road losing streak that began in 2005.

O'Brien's soft-spoken demeanor had barely hidden his frustration this season as the Wolfpack fought through everything from a string of injuries to an inability to protect the football. Its only victory this year had come against Wofford, a team from the second-highest division.

"It meant a lot to them. It meant a lot to the staff," O'Brien said. "I'm really happy for these kids. They won the football game. They finally played four quarters.

"It's just a heck of a win, man. That's all I can say."

It was a disappointing loss for the Pirates (4-4), a team that lives in the shadows of the headline-grabbing ACC schools. East Carolina had already taken down one of those teams, beating North Carolina on a last-play field goal in September. And while Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium was full of fans eager to beat another ACC school, N.C. State showed some fight that O'Brien said he hadn't seen from his team this season.

"I hadn't seen a guy smile that much after a victory," linebacker Ernest Jones said of O'Brien.

Still, it wasn't easy. The Wolfpack, who came in with the nation's worst turnover margin, nearly blew a 21-0 lead amid a familiar array of miscues before getting Eugene's fourth-quarter score for some breathing room.

Evans finished 29-for-44 as the Wolfpack stopped a 12-game losing streak to Division I-A programs. Its last such win was against Florida State on Oct. 5, 2006, followed by seven straight losses to end the 2006 season and the coaching tenure of Chuck Amato at his alma mater.

Amato's final game was a 21-16 loss to the Pirates at Carter-Finley Stadium, so the Wolfpack was more than happy to repay the favor.

"When we were kneeling the ball down, I came in the huddle and everybody was so jacked up," Evans said. "It feels great."

N.C. State 14 7 0 13 -- 34

East Carolina 0 17 3 0 -- 20

NCSt--Davis 37 pass from D.Evans (Hauschka kick)

NCSt--Dunlap 21 pass from D.Evans (Hauschka kick)

NCSt--J.Neal 20 blocked punt return (Hauschka kick)

ECU--C.Johnson 1 run (Hartman kick)

ECU--J.Bryant 18 pass from Kass (Hartman kick), :23.

ECU--FG Hartman 47, :00.

ECU--FG Hartman 29

NCSt--FG Hauschka 41

NCSt--Eugene 15 pass from D.Evans (Hauschka kick)

NCSt--FG Hauschka 21

A--43,527.

N.C. State ECU

First downs 21 21

Rushes-yards 28-49 34-72

Passing 335 254

Comp-Att-Int 29-44-1 28-53-1

Return Yards 46 29

Punts-Avg. 5-39.8 8-38.3

Fumbles-Lost 2-1 4-1

Penalties-Yards 7-54 4-49

Time of Possession 28:54 31:06

Individual Statistics

RUSHING--N.C. State, Eugene 22-63, Hauschka 1-(minus 3), D.Evans 2-(minus 5), Team 3-(minus 6). East Carolina, C.Johnson 19-63, Dodge 1-9, J.Williams 2-4, Harris 1-1, Lindsay 1-0, Kass 10-(minus 5).

PASSING--N.C. State, D.Evans 29-44-1-335. East Carolina, Kass 28-50-1-254, Pinkney 0-2-0-0, Harris 0-1-0-0.

RECEIVING--N.C. State, Dunlap 8-53, Bowens 5-93, Eugene 5-45, Kushner 3-13, Stone 2-74, Blackman 2-4, Davis 1-37, Hickman 1-9, Underwood 1-8, P.Bedics 1-(minus 1). East Carolina, Henry 7-64, J.Bryant 4-54, S.Rogers 4-31, C.Johnson 4-22, Harris 3-31, Crowell 3-25, Hickman 1-20, T.Lee 1-4, Sonnhalter 1-3.