Box Score

HONOLULU--The University of Hawai'ì Warrior football team won its second straight game with a 66-7 victory over Western Athletic Conference foe UTEP Saturday night, the largest margin of victory against a Division I-A opponent in school history.

It looked like a usual night at Aloha Stadium with early Halawa Valley rain showers and a crowd of 34,128. The Warriors (3-2, 2-2 WAC)struck first on a 1-yard touchdown rush by Thero Mitchell on Hawai'ì's second possession of the game.

And then the defense made a statement scoring 17 unanswered points in the last 1:24 in the first quarter. Coordinator Kevin Lempa and the Warrior defense had its finest half of the season forcing four turnovers that resulted in 24 points. The Warriors, which held the UTEP offense to 150 total yards in the first half, managed two interception returns for touchdowns including one for 90 yards by linebacker Matt Wright, the fourth longest in school history. Safety Nate Jackson blocked a UTEP field goal attempt seconds before the end of the half to preserve the shutout.

Meanwhile the Warrior offense capitalized on good field position and managed 231 yards, two touchdowns and a career-long 50-yard field goal by Justin Ayat to take a 38-0 lead at halftime.

UTEP (2-4, 1-2)came out running in the second half driving 72 yards on ten plays capped by a 8-yard run by Dario Davis on its first possession out of the locker room.

The Miners got the ball back at the end of the third quarter, but not for long as Warrior safety Robert Grant picked-off a Jon Schaper pass and returned it 26 yards for a touchdown, the third in the game.

The Hawai'i offense, led by quarterback Nick Rolovich, finished with 490 total yards, including 174 rushing, a season high. Rolovich, making his second start of the season for injured starter Timmy Chang, is now 2-0 as the Warrior starter in 2001.

Running back Mike Bass rushed for a career-high 146 yards and one touchdown and Rolovich completed 17-of-35 passes for 252 yards and a career-high three touchdowns.

The Warrior defense held the Miners to a season-low 244 net yards, 158 rushing and 86 passing. Linebacker Chris Brown finished with a team-high nine tackles.

Next week the Warriors travel to Tulsa, Okla., to meet the Golden Hurricane in a WAC game on Oct. 20 at Skelly Stadium. - uh -