Box Score
WISE, Va. -- The Notre Dame Falcons continued their winning ways on Saturday afternoon, as they endured a second half rally from the Virginia-Wise Cavaliers, and came away with a 35-29 road victory.  

The Falcons (2-0, 2-0 MEC) have now won four straight games, six out of their last seven dating back to last season, while the Cavaliers (1-1, 1-1 MEC) have now lost four straight to the Falcons. 

Notre Dame took advantage of a number of big plays in the first half, scoring three touchdowns coming from at least 37 yards out, before enduring a big second half run from the Cavaliers, who outscored NDC, 22-6 in the second half. 

The game didn't start well for the Falcons, as the Cavaliers went 66 yards on 12 plays on their opening drive, scoring on Carlton Griffths's two-yard touchdown rush to take an early 7-0 lead. 

Wise's defense forced the Falcons to punt on their first drive of the contest, and the NDC defense was able to return the favor moments later. Three plays into their second drive of the contest, Notre Dame struck for their first of many big plays on the day, as Malik Grove connected with Mitchell Shegos on a 75-yard touchdown pass to get the Falcons on the board. 

Three minutes after the first long scoring play of the contest, Notre Dame began a drive on their own three yard line, and scored five plays later, as Grove completed an 81-yard touchdown pass to CJ Germany, giving Notre Dame a 13-7 lead with just under five minutes left in the first quarter. 

After allowing the Cavaliers to go 66 yards on 12 plays on their opening drive, the Notre Dame defense clamped down, and held the Cavs to just 111 yards the rest of the half. Not only did they limit the Cavs offensively, but the defense was able to put up some points as well, as Vince Ellis tackled Griffith in the end zone for a safety with 12:07 left in the second quarter to give NDC a 15-7 lead. 

The combination of Grove and Shegos produced two more touchdowns in the first half. Notre Dame was looking at a third and 12 situation with just under six minutes left in the half, when Grove found Shegos on a 37-yard touchdown pass to give NDC a 22-7 advantage. 

With less than a minute to play in the second quarter, Notre Dame went 80 yards on 11 plays, and capped the drive on a 10-yard touchdown strike from Grove to Shegos, giving NDC a 29-7 lead at the half. 

The second half was a different story. After allowing Notre Dame to tally 429 yards of total offense in the first half, the Cavalier defense held Notre Dame's offense to just 136 yards in the second half, and kept them out of the end zone. 

The Cavaliers scored on their first drive of the second half, going 68 yards on 12 plays, as Griffith found the end zone on a one yard touchdown rush to make it 29-15. 

Notre Dame's first points of the second half came on a 23-yard field goal from Kyle Kaplan with 5:19 left in the third quarter, before the Cavaliers used the ground game to get into the end zone again, as Javonte Latney ran it in from two yards out to make it 32-22 with 56 seconds left in the third. 

UVa-Wise scsored one final time, with a little less than 12 minutes to play. Notre Dame went for a fake punt, which resulted in an incomplete pass, allowing the Cavaliers to take over at the NDC 46 yard line. Four plays later, Brycen Lee threw a three-yard touchdown pass to Skylar Brownlow to bring the deficit down to three (32-29) with 11:59 remaining. 

Notre Dame scored their final points of the game with eight minutes left in the contest. The Falcons used the right leg of Kaplan one more time, as he nailed a 37-yard field goal, his fifth of the season, giving NDC a 35-29 lead with 8:06 to play. 

Wise's next drive started on their own 18 yard line, but they were forced to punt just six plays into the drive after a great effort by the NDC defense. Notre Dame was forced to punt on their ensuing drive, and the Cavs took over at their own 35 yard line. 

Once again, the Notre Dame defense stood up to the test with the game on the line. On third down and long, Ellis came up with a huge sack, forcing a fourth and 14 situation. On the aforementioned fourth and 14 play, Jalen Ward blanketed Wise's Jacob Cousins, defending the incomplete pass to seal the win for NDC. 

Grove completed 18-of-40 passes on the day for 356 yards, four touchdowns, and once again didn't throw any interceptions. Grove added 80 yards rushing on 16 carries. DJ Greene was NDC's leading rusher, toting the ball 25 times for 90 yards. 

Shegos tied his own program record, hauling in three touchdown passes on the day. He was Grove's top target, as he caught seven passes on the afternoon for 162 yards. BJ Baldwin caught three passes for 63 yards, while Germany hauled in a pair of passes for 87 yards and a touchdown. 

The Falcons return to action next Saturday, Sept. 17, when they square off against Malone at Canton Glenn Oak High School in Canton, Ohio. Kickoff is scheduled for 3 p.m.