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Hawaii football team falls just short in home loss to UNLV

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager is brought down by UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard.
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JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM

Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager is brought down by UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard.

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Hawaii defensive back Cam Stone tries to come up with the bobbled pass to UNLV tight end Kaleo Ballungay.
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JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM

Hawaii defensive back Cam Stone tries to come up with the bobbled pass to UNLV tight end Kaleo Ballungay.

JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Hawaii quarterback Brayden Schager is brought down by UNLV linebacker Jackson Woodard.
JAMM AQUINO / JAQUINO@STARADVERTISER.COM
                                Hawaii defensive back Cam Stone tries to come up with the bobbled pass to UNLV tight end Kaleo Ballungay.

The Hawaii football team could not stop the clock or UNLV in a 29-27 loss at the Ching Complex tonight.

After apparently being stopped for a short gain, Jai’Den Thomas remained on his feet and broke away for a 33-yard scoring run to extend the Rebels’ lead to 29-20 with 6:03 to play.

But the Rainbow Warriors responded, with Brayden Schager lofting a 5-yard scoring pass to Jonah Panoke with 4:15 to go. The play was set up by Schager and Nick Cenacle collaborating on a 62-yard play.

The Rebels took over and did not give back possession. Twice they converted on third down, the biggest when quarterback Hajj-Malik Williams went 40 yards around the left side with 53 seconds to play. Having spent all their timeouts, the Warriors (4-6, 2-3 Mountain West) could not stop the Rebels (7-2, 3-1) from running out the clock.

After the teams traded field goals and touchdowns, the Rebels took a 22-20 lead into the final quarter.

Caden Chittenden, who missed a field-goal attempt near the end of the first half, capped the Rebels’ opening drive of the third quarter by connecting from 32 yards for a 15-10 lead.

The Warriors then took their first lead of the game when the offensive captains — Schager and wideout Jonah Panoke — teamed on a 49-yard scoring play.

But the Rebels answered with Williams’ 37-yard touchdown pass to Ricky White III for a 22-17 lead.

Kansei Matsuzawa’s second field goal, from 33 yards, cut it to 22-20.

The Warriors’ first two drives ended with a “dropped” pass that was intercepted and a third-down sack. The first led to Chittenden’s 41-yard field goal; the second resulted in Williams’ 23-yard scoring run on a quarterback keeper for a 10-0 UNLV lead.

>> PHOTOS: Hawaii vs. UNLV

But the Warriors answered with Schager’s 74-yard pass to Dekel Crowdus to cut the deficit to 10-7. On a skinny post, Crowdus ran past defensive back Cameron Oliver, grabbed the ball at the 35, and sprinted the rest of the way.

The Rebels extended the lead to 12-7 when White blocked Lucas Borrow’s punt out of the UH end zone for a safety. It was White’s NCAA-leading fourth block of the season. Irvin DeAngelo fielded the ensuing free kick at the UNLV 16 and raced his way to the UH 1. But the apparent 83-yard return was nullified because of a holding penalty.

Later, Antonio Doyle’s pick-6 was voided because of a late hit on Schager.

Matsuzawa’s career-long field goal of 41 yards closed UH to 12-10.

Chittenden, who entered hitting 18 of 21 field-goal attempts, missed tries from 28 and 31 yards in the first half.

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