Girls Soccer: Lyndhurst defeats Parsippany Hills 1-0.

Tom Horak | For NJ Advance Media

Lyndhurst’s Kaydee Yallo (17) dribbles the ball down field against Parsippany Hills during the girls soccer game at Parsippany Hills High School on 10/1/19.

North Jersey Interscholastic Conference

Player of the Year: Kaydee Yallo, Lyndhurst, Jr.

The Northeastern commit had a great year and swung a lot of games in the Lyndhurst’s favor.

Yallo finished with 17 goals and five assists, including a game-winning goal in the regular season against Parsippany Hills. The junior also scored the lone goal in an early season win over Dwight-Englewood, beating a defense that only gave up 11 goals all season.

Yallo’s sister, Karlee, also played a role on offense and was a senior leader for Lyndhurst.

Team of the Year: Lyndhurst

The Bergen County squad (17-3) won its first 12 games of the season.

That stretch included a 1-0 win over eventual Group 2 champion Parsippany Hills. Lyndhurst didn’t cash in on its chance to win a state title this fall, but this team was still impressive.

Lyndhurst was a gritty team and fought for every win.

The offense had some great games, but it was the defense that was stealing the show for much of the year. Lyndhurst only gave up 12 goals all year and finished with 14 shutouts.

“I’m so proud of their toughness,” Lyndhurst coach Kim Hykey said after that win over Parsippany Hills in the regular season. “We might not be as talented overall as even last year, but the way they’re coming together and grinding out wins is so satisfying.”

Coach of the Year: PJ Petrow, Saddle River Day

Saddle River Day closed the season on an incredible run.

The Rebels (14-5-1) made history and won the North, Non-Public B title, topping Montclair Kimberley in penalty kicks after a 1-1 tie. Keeper Livia Davidson was incredible along the way and had a great game in the state final, making 15 saves against Rutgers Prep.

The back line of Katherine Meeks, Ella Adamek, Emily Besserer, Calista Collins and Mia Walsh also played well down the stretch and helped Saddle River Day make it to the Non-Public B final.

Offensively, Jesscia Yee and Leanna Tsahalis were stars.

Yee finished the year with 19 goals and 10 assists, including a score in that 1-1 tie in the sectional final. Tsahalis ended the season with 16 goals and five assists, including the game winning goal against Gill St.Bernard’s in the sectional semis.

“When I came into the program three years ago, I said to myself, I’m going to give myself four or five years to get the program afloat,” said Petrow, whose team went 2-11 in 2017. “We were just thinking where we’d be a program that’s just over .500 and up off the ground. We’ve kinda overachieved in the postseason right now and moved on further than maybe people would have thought we would. The amount of effort, determination and sheer focus has been outstanding. What this has shown the last couple of games has been unreal.”

CONFERENCE NOTES

-Secaucus won the NJIC Tournament this fall and did so by beating Midland Park, 2-0, in the final of the in-season tournament. Damaris Rodriguez and Daniela Peschetti led the way throughout the season and helped the Patriots get hot on their way to a NJIC Tournament title.

-Dwight-Englewood and Lyndhust did not enter the NJIC Tournament because those teams focused instead on the Bergen County Tournament during the season. Both of those squads had great years, however, as they battled in the Liberty Division. Dwight-Englewood only gave up 11 goals all season as its defense helped the team put together a great year.

-Becton’s Carlie Koziol, Becton was sensational this fall, with 37 goals. Saddle Brook’s Ashley Georgevich also had a big year, finishing her senior year with 32 goals and 17 assists. Georgevich finished her time at Saddle Brook with 140 career goals.

-Emerson Boro played really well this fall and made it all the way to the North 1, Group 1 final. Gia Mandle was one of the most balanced threats in the state with 20 goals and 21 assists. Only eight players in the entire state finished the season with 20-plus totals in goals and assists.

Brandon Gould may be reached at bgould@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @BrandonGouldHS. Like NJ.com HS sports on Facebook.