By: Sean Farrell / North Jersey.com
Lyndhurst coach Kimberly Hykey tried to keep her impending milestone under wraps.
Her father/volunteer assistant, Jerry, had other ideas.
The Golden Bears gave Hykey her 200th career win last Wednesday by beating Secaucus, 1-0, on home soil. Sophomore Nikalena Iacono scored the lone goal in the second half to set up a post-game photo op.
Under Hykey, the Golden Bears have lived up their their name with winning records in all 14 seasons.
“It was pretty special,” Hykey said. “I didn’t really tell anybody and then my father said something to the girls before the game so he kind of let the cat of the bag. It’s cool to do it at Lyndhurst. I’ve played here and I’ve only coached here. It’s special to get the wins, but to do it where I went to school is even more.”
Hykey is still the all-time leading scorer at Lyndhurst after finishing high school with 123 goals. She set the record as a three-sport athlete and 2004 graduate before moving on to play soccer at Seton Hall.
The key to her coaching success has been more about toughness than elite talent. Club players don’t come around too often on the small public school level.
“If there’s anything we’re known for, we’re never going to give you a game,” Hykey said. “We’re going to work. We’re going to make you earn it. They’re tough kids and they battle. I think that’s why they are consistent.”
There was a bit of a learning curve early in the season with only three seniors starters and some questions about how to best optimize the lineup. Senior Elise Ferschweiler (6 goals, 1 assist) and junior Skyler Montillo (4 goals, 4 assists) have steadied the ship while helping Lyndhurst advance to the Bergen Invitational semifinals this Saturday.
“Now we’ve kind of settled in,” said Hykey, who has a career record of 202-70-15. “I think their confidence is starting to grow with each game.”
