COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- Jeff Cunningham and John Wilmar Perez each had a goal and an assist as the Columbus Crew scored three second-half goals to beat the Chicago Fire 3-0 Wednesday for the first time in seven attempts.

Cunningham scored in the 65th minute and set up Perez four minutes later, and Brian Maisonneuve added a goal in the 83rd minute for Columbus (8-5-5) which won its third straight game.

The victory over division-rival Chicago (11-5-3) continues the hot streak the Crew are on since the hiring of coach Greg Andrulis. The Crew are 7-2-3 overall and 5-0-3 at home since Andrulis replaced Tom Fitzgerald on May 17.

Columbus, which has scored 28 goals in last 12 games, had trouble early breaking through the Fire's league-leading defense. The Fire had allowed just 19 goals entering the game.

Cunningham opened the scoring after taking a pass from Mike Duhaney, avoiding two Chicago defenders and beating goalkeeper Zach Thornton with a shot that went between Thornton's legs.

In the 69th minute, Cunningham stole the ball from defender Jim Curtain and passed to a wide-open John Wilmar Perez for the easy score to make it 2-0.

Maisonneuve scored off a hard shot into the top right corner to make it 3-0. Brian McBride and Perez assisted on the play.

Chicago's leading goal scorer, Eric Wynalda, had three good chances in the second half but couldn't convert. Crew goalkeeper Tom Presthus pushed Wynalda's shot from five yards out over the crossbar in the 50th minute and made a diving stop on a Wynalda shot from eight yards minutes later.

Chicago played without their captain Peter Nowak and was shut out for the first time in a regular season game since a 3-0 defeat by Dallas on Aug. 16, 2000.