Help with search page?

Hello, I have a small issue with the search page. In the footer I have a loop that basically shows all the posts from category X. The code for this looks like:

<?php if(have_posts()) : ?>
     <?php $paged = (get_query_var('paged')) ? get_query_var('paged') : 1;
     query_posts("cat=8&posts_per_page=7&paged=$paged"); ?>
        <?php while(have_posts()) : the_post(); ?>

This should show the 7 most recent posts from category 8 regardless of what is happening on the page. This works fine except for when I search for something. The search term I enter into the search box applies to not only the search loop, but ALSO to every other loop on the page. Is it possible to limit the search term to only the search loop?