By RYAN ARENA

Sports Editor

Three Wildcats scored goals as East St. John started its season off with a strong victory, defeating St. Charles 3-0 on Thursday.

Tyler Hazet, Antonio Guerrero and Joseph Perrilloux each scored as ESJ (1-0) notched the win, prompting Coach Paul Dupuy to note the potential he sees in his 2008 squad.

“Everyone’s young. We’ve got a lot of freshman and sophomores. It’s a matter of discipline,” he said. “We’re getting ready to play a long season, but we can be pretty good if we buckle down.”

SCC was playing at less than full strength, with players still aboard for the football team’s playoff run. As such, they struggled to score against a tough ESJ defense anchored by its team athleticism.

“We’ve got a lot of speed on the field,” Dupuy said. “We make some errors, but they can make up for those mistakes a lot of the time with their speed.”

East St. John scored twice in the first half to take control of the game.

Perrilloux scored his goal off of a header on a throw in. That set the tempo of the day.

“It relaxed us,” Dupuy said. “We were tight early on. St. Charles had the edge, I think.”

It builds a little momentum for the Wildcats, who did not win their jamboree, but played a strong Vandebilt Catholic team to a scoreless tie.

“I think it’s a good sign. They’ve got a pretty good team there,” said Dupuy.