CORVALLIS, Ore. — It took one series for Oregon State's defense to adjust to what Hawai'i was doing on offense yesterday.

Then the game turned in the Beavers' favor, resulting in a 45-7 victory.

Hawai'i scored on its first possession of the game, which was aided by a personal foul penalty by OSU safety Al Afalava, a Kahuku High alum.

"We just came out slow," Afalava said. "The coaches sat us down and calmed us down, and we just started executing. After that drive we started playing. Everybody ran to the ball, and executed. And then everything started to go our way."

OSU coach Mike Riley was disappointed in how the defense started the game, but was impressed with how it responded.

It hadn't gone well for Oregon State the first two games of the season when the defense caused the team to fall behind.

The problem for the Beavers was preparing for the Warriors. Practice can only do so much. They needed to see the real thing.

"The hardest thing with a run-and-shoot or spread offense is simulating it in practice to get a feel of how fast they are and the speed in which they play," Riley said. "A lot of times in a game, you know the play and you know what you are supposed to do but their speed is different from the scout team speed. But we adjusted to it, and played really good football."

The Beavers held the Warriors to 211 yards, which was Hawai'i's lowest production since it got 174 yards against Southern Methodist on Oct. 3, 1998.

Quarterbacks Tyler Graunke and Inoke Funaki combined for 16-for-35 passing for 154 yards and three interceptions.

"They have a really good offense, very explosive," said Afalava, who had four solo tackles and one pass breakup. "They run a lot of choice routes. We had to adjust in the second half, and then executed."

OSU's success against the pass came with a limited pass rush. Each quarterback was sacked once. There were three key pass breakups by the Beavers.

Hawai'i's running game netted just 57 yards, with Kealoha Pilares leading the way with 36 yards, including a 16-yard TD run with 9:49 left in the first quarter.

Oregon State's win was important to the 16 players with Hawai'i ties on the roster. Several of them were worried about going home to face family and friends if they lost.

"It was beautiful," Afalava said. "I get to go home with a big smile. When we beat them two years ago there, I was able to go home with a big smile. It's bragging rights."