By RYAN ARENA

L’Observateur

East St. John continued their winning ways this season with a pair of victories on the soccer field over the weekend, defeating Central 3-1 and Sam Houston 1-0.

The Wildcats tied Woodlawn 2-2, making their record 3-0-1 so far this season.

Against Central, DeChris Strong stepped up with his second big offensive game of the season, scoring two goals to lift his team. Andrew Alexander added another to help the Wildcats nail down their second win.

Marlon Watkins’ goal midway through the second half proved the difference for ESJ as it defeated Sam Houston.

Finally, against Woodlawn, junior Darion Monroe had a breakout performance in his first season with the Wildcats’ soccer squad, scoring a pair of goals to help preserve a tie and extend ESJ’s early season unbeaten run.

“The guys played better defense and we worked the ball around a bit,” said East St. John coach Paul Dupuy. “We’re seeing improvement. Now, we got a bit tired, especially against Woodlawn. They were bigger and stronger, and we still have to work on our conditioning.

“I was a little disappointed in our performance in that game. But overall, I’m starting to see a team play soccer together, not just freelancing and relying on athleticism.”

Dupuy said that one thing he was very pleased with was the effort the Wildcats gave. Even in the final game, where he felt his team wore down a bit, he said his players gave their maximum.

“We played very hard,” Dupuy said. “We made some mistakes when fatigue set in, but we didn’t let down in terms of effort. The guys are buying in to what’s being taught and the results have been there.”