HEMPSTEAD, N.Y. (AP) – Freshman Ron Whitcomb threw three touchdown passes and No. 20 Maine scored 35 straight points in a 44-21 rout of Hofstra on Saturday night.

Junior running back Marcus Williams had touchdowns on runs of 19 and 36 yards for the Black Bears (1-1, 1-0 Atlantic-10). He finished with 192 yards on 19 carries.

Whitcomb, who was 11-for-20 for 183 yards, connected with Ryan Waller on throws of 35 and 31 yards. He also threw a 4-yard TD pass to Christian Pereira as Maine built a 35-7 halftime lead.

Williams’ 19-yard run gave Maine a 7-0 lead at 9:20 of the first quarter, but Ricky Bryant caught an 87-yard pass from Anton Clarkson to get the Pride (0-2, 0-1) even 5:10 later.

Waller hauled in his catches of 35 and 31 yards at 12:44 of the first and 3:26 of the second, respectively, to ignite the 35-point run. Included was Williams’ 36-yard TD at 13:17 of the third.

Trevor Dimmie scored two late touchdowns on runs of 13 and 20 yards in the fourth quarter for the Pride. He finished with 69 yards on 13 carries to boost his school career record to 3,051 yards.

AP-ES-09-06-03 2322EDT