The whistle blew. The ball was placed. And Robert Dasler Jr. stood alone before his penalty kick, one shot away from history.

He had imagined this moment for months. The chase for Lyndhurst’s all-time scoring record had become a source of fuel and internal pressure. He knew the number and the name he was chasing. And he hoped to do it here at home.

Opposing teams knew it too. They threw everything at him – double teams, man-marking, physical play – anything to force someone else to beat them. But Dasler prepared for it long before his senior year began, doubling his time in the weight room and training both feet.

On Oct. 15, his moment arrived when a Park Ridge player took a handball in the box.

Dasler wound up. He went left. The net rippled. The goal was his 71st, pushing him past Enrique Mutsoli for the most at Lyndhurst. For his effort, he’s the North Jersey Male Athlete of the Week, presented by HSS.

Through it all, his dad, assistant coach Robert Dasler Sr., and head coach Emad Abu-Hakmeh were steady voices. They reminded him his time would come.

“It was just so much pressure and stress,” Dasler said. “I really wanted to break it. I was really determined. [My coaches] always helped me out with that, but Enrique set that bar really high and I had to work to get it.”

Dasler leads North Jersey with 37 goals to go with nine assists, putting him in reach of another record: Mutsoli’s single-season mark of 39 goals. Lyndhurst is 12-4 and unbeaten in the NJIC Patriot Division with one more league game to play.

His path to the record wasn’t typical. As a freshman, Dasler started as a defender, playing left back in a 3-5-2 formation. Dasler said didn’t care where he lined up. He just wanted to be on the field.

Since then, he’s grown from a 5-foot-4 rookie to a 6-1 striker, but he hasn’t forgotten his roots. He’s comfortable dropping back to hold a lead, and his ability to read the field and create from different angles makes him hard to stop.

“He’s a true leader,” Abu-Hakmeh said. “He played a major role in bringing the team together and being supportive and encouraging and motivating. And you can find a lot of players that know how to play the game, but they cannot get the best out of their teammates.”

The connection between Dasler and Abu-Hakmeh runs deep. Robby’s father helped convince Abu-Hakmeh to return to the high school sidelines in 2021. The two coached Lyndhurst travel teams together, and when the high school program needed a reset, they stepped in.

“My story with Robby is kind of personal,” Abu-Hakmeh said. “I told him many years ago he was going to be very special. Last year, he was a little worried. I told him, ‘Look, I promise you, you’re going to set a record that’s going to be very hard for people to break.’”

Dasler’s journey started early. He was kicking a ball around the backyard at 18 months and routinely played with older age groups.

His shot – powerful, precise, and unpredictable – was forged through years of repetition. His dad drilled him on using both feet and Dasler found the perfect spot to sharpen them. For years, he went to a nearby schoolyard to fire shots against the wall.

“My left finally got pretty close to my right,” Dasler said. “I just train both of them equally.”

Dasler plans to play at the college level and has interest from Montclair State, Rutgers-Newark and Caldwell. He’s leaning toward staying close to home and pursuing a degree in business or finance.

Wherever he lands, Dasler will bring the same hunger he had as a freshman.

“I tell everyone it doesn’t matter the position,” said Dasler, who currently stands at 82 goals all-time. “I just want to play.”

Robert Dasler Jr.

Sport: Soccer

School: Lyndhurst

Class: Senior. Age: 17

Accomplishment: Dasler had six goals and one assist last week and moved to No. 1 on the school’s all-time goal list.