WISE - - Notre Dame College tallied 565 yards of total offense and held off a late UVa-Wise rally to claim a 35-29 Mountain East Conference win at Carl Smith Stadium Saturday. Falcons' quarterback Malik Grove passed for 356 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for 80 yards in the victory.

UVa-Wise (1-1/0-1) got off to a fast start in the home debut of first-year coach Dane Damron. The Cavaliers took the opening kickoff and moved 66 yards on 12 plays for the first score of the contest. Carlton Griffith capped the drive with a 2-yard touchdown scamper with 11:23 to play in the first quarter.

Notre Dame (2-0/2-0) cut the lead to a point with 8:23 to play in the opening quarter when Grove hooked up with Mitchell Shegos on slant pattern. The senior wide receiver hauled in the pass and raced 75 yards for the score. A high snap led to a missed extra point leaving the score 7-6 in favor of UVa-Wise.

Grove's second big pass completion of the day allowed Notre Dame to take the lead for good. Reigning MEC Offensive Player of the Week, C.J. Germany hauled in an 81-yard pass reception on a third down and five play to make the score 12-6. Kyle Kaplan's second PAT attempt of the game was successful, leaving the score 13-7.

UVa-Wise spent the remainder of the afternoon playing catch-up. Falcons' punter Anton Vrebac played a big role in his team's next score. Vrebac boomed a punt 53 yards, having it downed inside the Cavaliers' 1-yard line.

Two plays into the UVa-Wise drive, Griffith was dropped in the end zone for a safety.

After each team traded punts, the Falcons pushed their lead to 22-7 when Shegos hauled in his second touchdown of the day, a 37-yard strike to complete a drive that spanned six plays and 83 yards. Kaplan's conversion kick was good to extend the lead to 15.

Notre Dame added what proved to be a pivotal score with 37 ticks to play in the opening half when Grove tossed his fourth first half touchdown, a 10-yard connection to Shegos. Kaplan's PAT made the score 29-7 at intermission.

The second half belonged to UVa-Wise as Damron's squad would outscore the guests 22-6 in the final 30 minutes.

After forcing Notre Dame to punt on its opening possession of the second half, UVa-Wise took over on its 32-yard line with 12 minutes to play in the period. Junior tailbacks Javonte Latney and Griffith would be the story of the drive as the duo combined for 42 yards, including Griffith's second rushing touchdown of the day, a 1-yard score. The Cavaliers would cut the lead to 14 when receiver Corey Hillberath ran in the two-point conversion on an end-around.

With its lead cut to 14, the Falcons turned to Grove to get back in scoring positon. The quarterback would tally 22 rushing yards and 15 passing yards as part of a 12-play 69-yard drive that was aided by a 15-yard penalty against the Cavaliers. Kaplan capped the drive with a 23-yard field goal to make the score 32-15 with 5:19 showing in the third quarter.

Redshirt freshman quarterback Brycen Lee then engineered the best drive of his young career as the signal caller completed five passes on an 11-play drive that was finished off by a 2-yard touchdown run by Latney. Trent Martin's extra point had the Cavs within 10 at 32-22.

UVa-Wise would be unsuccessful in an onside kick attempt following the score but the Cavs would force a three-and-out to regain possession to start the fourth quarter.

UVa-Wise would follow suit on its possession, going three-and-out to turn the ball back over to the Falcons. Again, the Cavs defense was up to the task as Notre Dame was forced to punt. The Falcons attempted a fake punt but were unsuccessful giving UVa-Wise the ball on the Notre Dame 46 down 10.

Lee's hot second half continued as the Mayo, Fla. product hooked up with Jacob Cousins on a 36-yard connection on the first play of the drive. Three plays later, Lee fired his first collegiate touchdown pass when he found tight end Skylar Brownlow for a 3-yard touchdown. Martin's extra point cut the lead to three at 32-29.

Notre Dame would consume 3:50 off the clock on its next drive and extend its lead to 35-29 when Kaplan was good on a 37-yard attempt.

UVa-Wise regained possession with 8:01 to play but after a 31-yard completion to Jacob Cousins, the drive stalled out and the Cavs were forced to punt.

Notre Dame would pick up one first down on its drive but would be forced to punt, giving UVa-Wise the ball down six with 2:33 to play.

The comeback bid would fall short as a sack by the Falcons' Vincent Ellis on a third down and seven play would force the Cavs into a fourth down and 14 play. Lee's pass attempt would come up incomplete allowing the visitors to kneel out the clock and win its second league game in as many weeks.

Shegos finished with seven receptions for 162 yards and three scores while tailback D.J. Greene accounted for 90 rushing yards in the victory. Grove completed 18 passes to six different receivers while Claudy Mathieu registered a pair of sacks as part of a five tackle performance.

The Cavs' Maurice Watkins led all players with 11 tackles while linebackers Alvin Enahoro and Zachary Blair had nine stops each. Lee finished 27 of 45 through the air for 257 yards. Jacob Cousins had five receptions for 90 yards while brother James caught four passes for 62 yards. Hillberath posted a game-high eight catches for 37 yards. Latney tallied 68 yards on the ground while Griffith added 53 as part of 137-yard rushing performance.

The two schools combined for 959 yards in the contest with neither team committing a turnover.

Next week, UVa-Wise will be on the road to face defending league champion Shepherd University. Kickoff from Shepherdstown, W.Va. is set for 12 p.m.