Hawaii holds on for a 35-16 victory over Central Arkansas to improve to 3-1.

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Lincoln Victor, a true freshman, scores his first touchdown — an 11-yarder from Cole McDonald — to give the Warriors a 35-16 lead with 3:27 to play.

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The Bears close to 28-16 when running back Carlos Blackman takes a handoff, goes around left end, slips a tackle and finds the end zone for a 23-yard score. Hayden Ray’s PAT makes it a 12-point deficit with 12:18 to play.

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After a scoreless third quarter, the Warriors still hold a 28-9 lead. But the Bears are driving, opening the final period on their 46.

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UH vs. Central Arkansas photos

FIRST HALF:

The Warriors held a comfortable 28-9 lead to start the second half, forcing a three-and-out on the Bears opening drive. Hawaii was moving the ball well enough on its first possession after intermission, but McDonald threw his first pick of the game in the end zone to kill the threat.

Hawaii had some good moments en route to taking a 28-9 halftime lead, but that mistake-free game head coach Nick Rolovich was looking for didn’t happen. The Warriors committed two turnovers that resulted in only three points for Central Arkansas, including a 35-yard field goal right before the half that gave the Bears an emotional lift. They got the ball to start the second half in hopes of cutting into a big lead the Warriors built off the arm of McDonald.

In the opening 30 minutes, he completed 13 of 16 passes for 162 yards and three touchdowns to wideouts Jared Smart, JoJo Ward and Cedric Byrd II. Hawaii’s first touchdown came by way of the defense as defensive back Kai Kaneshiro took a deflected fourth-down pass and returned it 55 yards for a touchdown.

It helped set the tone for the Warriors, who were coming off three meetings with Pac-12 opponents. This could have been a trap game, but the Warriors were ready from the start. Their opening drive of the game appeared destined for a score until running back Miles Reed fumbled at the Central Arkansas 31. It was his second lost fumble of the season.

The Warriors defense turned away the Bears on the ensuing drive. Smart muffed a punt in the waning moments of the second quarter, giving the Bears the ball at the UH 12. Once again, the defense turned tough long enough to force the field goal by Hayden Ray that split the sticks. He also had an extra point blocked following a 4-yard touchdown pass from Carlo Blackman to Sam Carmargo that cut UH’s advantage to 28-6. It was Carmargo’s first catch of his career.

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Stephen Tsai’s live blog