DURHAM, N.H. (Interstat) — Frankie Weaver threw two touchdown passes and visiting Monmouth used a fast start to defeat New Hampshire 42-21 in an NCAA Football Championship Division game on Saturday at Wildcat Stadium. The Hawks improved to 5-2, while the Wildcats fell to 2-6. Attendance was 8,693. Monmouth opened with three touchdowns in the first quarter and added another score late in the second to take control. The Hawks finished with a strong ground game and made enough defensive plays to keep New Hampshire at a distance after the break.

Weaver, the top star for Monmouth, completed 16 of 26 passes for 195 yards and two touchdowns and rushed once for 3 yards. The 6-foot-5, 215-pound quarterback from New Market, Md., connected with Tra Neal on a 35-yard touchdown and found Shane Garrett for a 3-yard score. Kenny Smith Jr., a 5-foot-11, 185-pound running back, carried 27 times for 175 yards and two touchdowns and caught one pass for 14 yards. Elijah Jennings, a 5-foot-8, 170-pound running back, had 28 carries for 126 yards and a touchdown, one reception for 25 yards and one punt return for 7 yards. Nazir Treadwell added six carries for 22 yards and a touchdown.

Neal finished with five receptions for 82 yards and a touchdown. Gavin Nelson had five catches for 51 yards, Garrett had two receptions for 10 yards and a score, Marcus Middleton had one catch for 9 yards and Christian Harrison had one reception for 4 yards. Sky Sholder converted all six of Monmouth’s extra-point attempts. Monmouth’s defense received three tackles and one sack from JJ Lewis, five tackles from Ryan Russo and three tackles and one sack from Mounir Keshen. Kyle Jackson, Spencer Kishbaugh and Donovan Fey each made three tackles, and Charlie Sasso had two. Brendan Bigos recorded two tackles and one quarterback hurry, Jaeden Jones had two tackles and one interception, Hunter Watson made two tackles, and Luke Schabel punted twice for 53 yards.

New Hampshire was led by Tommy McLeish, who completed 13 of 19 passes for 178 yards and one touchdown. Brooks Bentley, a 6-foot-3, 215-pound quarterback, completed 3 of 11 passes for 29 yards and rushed three times for 4 yards. Myles Thomason, a 5-foot-9, 175-pound running back, carried seven times for 70 yards and a touchdown and caught one pass for 11 yards. Joquez Smith, a 5-foot-8, 190-pound running back, had 10 carries for 20 yards and a touchdown and one reception for 3 yards. Ty Carlson caught three passes for 62 yards and a touchdown, Logan Perez had three catches for 50 yards, Ja’Carree Kelly had four catches for 41 yards, Ryan Ricketti had two catches for 29 yards and Josh Fillion had two catches for 11 yards.

Matt Guidebeck punted five times for 190 yards, and New Hampshire also recorded an 11-yard punt. Lucas Glassburn handled the kicking duties. Defensively, Trevor Barry made 20 tackles, Jackson Stone had 16, Cohen Cook had 12 and Matthew Sopp had 10. Mason Smith, a 6-foot-4, 255-pound defender, had five tackles, and Chris Campanelli also had five. Ethan Aghakhan, Sean Webb and Phillip Harris each made four tackles. Micah Wing had three tackles and one quarterback hurry. Nijah Richards and Fatim Diggs each had two tackles, while Cameron Garner-Young, Malik Diaby, Brooks Connors, Blake Holmes and Sean Hickey each had one.

Monmouth entered the game after a 41-40 victory over Towson and had also earned wins over Dartmouth, Albany and Sacred Heart this season. New Hampshire entered after a 30-27 overtime loss at North Carolina A&T and had beaten Elon and Stonehill. Monmouth next plays at Hampton, while New Hampshire hosts Merrimack.

Monmouth scored first when Treadwell ran 2 yards for a touchdown with 11:17 left in the first quarter. Kenny Smith Jr. added a 6-yard touchdown run with 7:20 remaining in the first, and Weaver hit Neal for a 35-yard score with 1:23 left in the quarter. Weaver connected with Garrett from 3 yards out with 25 seconds remaining in the second quarter. New Hampshire got on the board in the third quarter when Thomason scored on an 11-yard run with 12:07 remaining. Kenny Smith Jr. answered with a 27-yard touchdown run with 8:08 left in the third. Joquez Smith scored on a 3-yard run with 4:45 remaining in the fourth, and Jennings broke free for a 15-yard touchdown with 2:22 left. New Hampshire closed the scoring when McLeish found Carlson for a 41-yard touchdown with 1:16 remaining. Sholder made all six of Monmouth’s extra points, and Glassburn made all three of New Hampshire’s extra-point attempts.

Interstat’s game simulator had projected a final score of Monmouth 43, New Hampshire 38. Interstat’s ELO system had projected New Hampshire with a 50.7 percent probability to win.