As nice as they can look on paper, preseason results aren’t always indicative of what’s to come when the action kicks off for the campaign proper.

At the same time, after Louisville City FC maintained its undefeated exhibition schedule on Thursday afternoon with a 2-1 victory against St. Louis CITY SC of Major League Soccer at CITYPARK behind second-half goals by Elijah Wynder and Kyle Adams, the signs continued to be positive for the perennial USL Championship contenders.

“I think there’s still, certainly, areas where we want to continue to improve,” said LouCity Head Coach Danny Cruz. “But the mentality of the group was excellent of everyone that stepped on the field, and I think it starts there. The guys are buying into the shape. It’s clear.

“We’re excited about the performance, but at the same time we’re making sure it’s clear to the group that you’re never satisfied, you’re not complacent, and we still have a lot of room to grow.”

After a quiet opening 45 minutes, LouCity took the lead through Wynder two minutes in the second half. The Academy product stole possession thanks to a successful press and slotted home his finish for his first goal this preseason. The lead held until the 51st minute, when St. Louis’ Aziel Jackson netted an equalizer.

From there, things escalated as LouCity and St. Louis traded chances. Wilson Harris had a shot cleared off the line for the visitors, while Wynder tracked down and blocked an opposing counterattack seconds later.

Adams headed LouCity back in front in the 56th minute as the center back found himself on the receiving end of Adrien Perez’s corner kick. Jorge Gonzalez also hit back of the net in the 84th minute, but video review disallowed the goal for offside.

After a full 90 minutes, the clubs scrimmaged another half hour that saw both teams score another goal, including one that counted for Gonzalez.

LouCity is now 3-0-1 in its preseason slate, including victories against fellow USL Championship sides El Paso Locomotive FC and Sacramento Republic FC last week at the Desert Friendlies in Tucson, Ariz. and a 2-2 draw against MLS’s Austin FC.

With multiple goals in each of the side’s outings so far, the pieces appear to be coming together well as Cruz’s side builds toward its season opener in El Paso against Locomotive FC on March 9.

“I thought we saw growth from an attacking standpoint,” Cruz said. “The players were brave. We worked a ton on our verticality over the course of the last week. I thought it was excellent from the group.”