By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

East St. John fell to 0-4 in District 6-I play Friday night as it fell at home to Hahnville, 6-0.

The Tigers led 2-0 at halftime, and broke the game open in the second half.

“Our young guys aren’t covering real well right now,” said East St. John Coach Paul Dupuy. “Hahnville stifled our attacks all game.”

For the Tigers (2-2), a win keeps them in a third place tie with East Ascension in district play, behind first place Dutchtown and Destrehan.

Dupuy says that he feels like the Wildcats’ offensive woes led to some frustration in his players – which, in turn, led to defensive lapses.

“Some guys were frustrated at our lack of shot opportunities,” Dupuy said. “They tried to attack more, and it left us open to Hahnville offensively. We left open some real easy nets.”

With the first round of district play in the books (ESJ was schedule Tuesday, after press time), Dupuy said that his team will shift its focus going forward, and that that focus will begin with defense.

“Early on and last year, we were able to get by on our athleticism. If someone got through, we had the speed to run them down,” Dupuy said. “The teams we’re playing now are too skilled. They exploit those weaknesses we’re leaving.

“We’re going to focus more on just playing good defense. We can’t afford to be as aggressive as we have been, we’re leaving too many openings.”

Meanwhile, he says, Hahnville can thank Coach Rafael DeVega for much of its success, says Dupuy.

“He really takes advantage of what he’s got over there,” said Dupuy. “He has his skill guys controlling the center of the field, his faster players doing well on the wings. He always gets the most out of them. I’ve always admired his coaching skills.”