HONOLULU – Despite nearly doubling Hawai'i in total offense, the Dukes were dealt a 24-14 loss early Sunday morning at the Clarence T.C. Ching Complex.
 
Duquesne (1-3) finished with 364 yards of total offense compared to the 184 posted by the Rainbow Warriors (1-3). The Dukes' defense limited Hawai'i to under 100 yards passing and rushing.
 
Duquesne quarterback Joe Mischler was 16 of 30 for 133 yards, but threw a pair of interceptions, including one returned for a touchdown. Darius Perrantes spelled Mischler in the second half and went 6-of-13 in the air for 97 yards with one touchdown and one interception.
 
Dwayne Menders, Jr. hauled in six receptions for 62 yards and a touchdown, while Abdul Janneh posted five catches for 50 yards.
 
Running back Billy Lucas toted the rock 18 times for 70 yards and added 45 yards receiving on a trio of catches (115 all-purpose yards). DeMarcus Ware added 13 carries for 54 yards.
 
The Dukes forced a quick three-and-out on the first possession of the game. Duquesne put together a 14-play drive on its first offensive possession which ended with a Brian Bruzdewicz 26-yard field goal that put the Dukes up 3-0 with 6:17 to play in the first quarter.
 
Hawai'i returned the ensuing kickoff all the way to the Duquesne 35-yard line and cashed in with a five-yard Dedrick Parson touchdown that made the score 7-3 with 4:20 left in the opening period.
 
The Rainbow Warriors special teams led directly to their next score. Hawai'i blocked a Duquesne punt deep in their own territory, before a 17-yard Parson touchdown pushed the deficit to 14-3 with 11 minutes to play in the second quarter.
 
Hawai'i was poised to add to its lead on its next drive when it drove into the red zone. The Dukes' defense stood tall and forced a field goal attempt, which was blocked by Jaelen Carson to keep the score at 14-3 with 2:31 left until halftime.
 
Perrantes spelled Mischler three plays into the next drive and got the Dukes into scoring position before the half. Bruzdewicz came on in the closing seconds of the half and connected on a 30-yard field goal to cut the deficit to one possession, 14-6, heading into halftime.
 
Duquesne received the second half kick and pushed the ball into Hawai'i territory with the help of a roughing the punter penalty on a 4^th and 17. The Dukes moved the ball all the way down to the three-yard line, before Mischler was picked off in the endzone to keep the score at 14-6 with 6:36 left in the third quarter.
 
On the very next play, Ayden Garnes gave the ball right back to the Dukes at the 35-yard line. Duquesne moved the ball back down to the 13-yard line but a missed field goal ended the threat with four minutes to play in the third quarter.
 
The Dukes' defense continued its stout play and got the ball back to the offense in five plays. Duquesne had the ball in Hawai'i territory when the Rainbow Warriors' Penei Pavihi picked off Mischler and took it 50 yards for a touchdown to make the score 21-6 less than a minute into the fourth quarter.
 
Hawai'i went on to add a field goal that pushed its advantage to 24-6 with 6:33 to play in the game. Perrantes relieved Mischler and led the Dukes on a eight-play, 75-yard drive that was capped off with a 29-yard touchdown pass to Menders, Jr. that made the score 24-14 (two-point try successful) with just over two minutes to play in the game.
 
Duquesne recovered the ensuing onside kick and Lucas hauled in a 32-yard catch-and-run to setup the Dukes in the red zone once again. Unfortunately, Perrantes was intercepted in the endzone and Hawai'i ran the clock out to secure its first win of the season.
 
Duquesne's defense was impressive all evening. The Dukes posted six tackles for loss, including a trio of sacks. Linebacker Todd Hill led the team with two sacks, a forced fumble and a quarterback hurry to go along with five tackles (three solo). Garnes finished with an interception and a forced fumble.
 
Hawai'i quarterback Joey Yellen, a transfer from Pitt, was limited to 86 yards passing on 13 of 20 attempts with an interception. Parson led the Rainbow Warriors on the ground with 58 yards on 11 carries and two touchdowns.
 
The Dukes will have the week off upon returning to the Steel City. Duquesne heads into Northeast Conference (NEC) play on Saturday, Oct. 1 when it travels to take on Stonehill in North Easton, Massachusetts.
 
Stonehill, who is in its first year transitioning from NCAA Division II to Division I FCS, will be playing its first official NEC game against the Dukes. Kickoff from WB Mason Stadium is set for 12:00 p.m. (ET) and the game will broadcast ESPN3.
 
GAME NOTES: The Dukes were only 2-of-4 in the red zone … Duquesne held a time of possession advantage of over 14 minutes and ran 81 total plays, compared to 46 for Hawai'i … The Dukes earned 24 first downs, compared to just 13 for the Rainbow Warriors … Hawai'i was charged with eight penalties for 75 yards, including a pair of rouging the punter penalties and a targeting foul … Duquesne was penalized three times for 17 yards … The victory was the first-career head coaching win for Timmy Chang … The contest kicked off locally in Honolulu at 6:00 p.m., but due to the six-hour time difference, did not start until 12:00 a.m. on Sunday morning on the east coast … This was Duquesne's second trip all-time out to the Aloha State. The Dukes lost the first-ever meeting with the Rainbow Warriors in 2018, 42-21.