Box Score
LYNDHURST, Ohio -- Notre Dame won for the 22nd straight time overall and claimed its 18th consecutive victory at home with a 4-0 win over Salem International (W. Va.) on Tuesday night.

The Falcons got goals from Christian Earnest, Elliot Kelly, Jacob Sheppard and Tom Owens in a non-conference match that marked the team's 2012 home opener. Owens also recorded a pair of assists in the game. With the victory, Notre Dame (3-0) extended an overall win streak that started on Sept. 2, 2011.  The Blue & White have now won 45 of their last 46 games, dating back to the beginning of the 2010 season.

NDC netted two goals in the game's first half, a 45-minute period that saw the Falcons outshoot the Tigers, 14-2.  Earnest scored his goal -- off an Owens feed -- in the seventh minute.  Kelly doubled the Falcon lead with a corner rebound goal in the 31st minute.

In the second half, SIU (1-2) managed more pressure on the NDC goal, but the Falcon defense maintained the clean sheet.  NDC goalkeeper Jan Skorupinski kept a lid on the Falcon goal; he finished the night with one save.

Sheppard claimed his netfinder in the 69th minute. Owens scored his team-leading fourth goal in the 86th minute. He has now scored 12 points (four goals, four assists) over the Falcons' first three games.

The final score marked Notre Dame's 12th shutout in the 22-game win streak.  In those 22 games the Falcons have outscored foes, 84-14.

Notre Dame hasn't lost a home opener since Sept. 27, 2006.

The Falcons' next contest is slated for Friday, when NDC hosts Ohio Dominican (Korb Field, 7 p.m.).