High school girls soccer: Dickson and Nimmer lead high-scoring Timpanogos offense

OREM — Few teams can draw close to matching the one-two punch on offense that Gel Dickson and Marissa Nimmer create for the Timpanogos Timberwolves.

Both players ranked in the top 10 among 5A scorers a year ago and both rank in the top 10 statewide this season. They combined for 43 goals last fall and have already tallied 30 goals in '09. During their high school careers, Dickson has accumulated 70 goals while Nimmer has scored 53.

Figuring out how to limit the damage the duo can cause is enough to create both headaches and nightmares for just about any defense.

"They are both playmakers," Timpanogos head coach Natalyn Lewis said. "If they are not getting the ball at their feet, both of them will go get the ball and make something happen. They don't wait around for somebody to deliver the perfect pass to them."

Since Dickson and Nimmer both possess strong playmaking abilities, the T-Wolves can count on using a multi-dimensional attack to throw off opponents. It also helps that each player has a distinct playing style that forces defenses to adapt to them differently.

Nimmer is more calculated in her approach to the net. She is a left-footed player who uses precision and possession to beat a defender. Dickson, on the other hand, is a right-footed attacker who uses her speed to get around opposing players.

Those different skills help one player complement the other. So does their familiarity with one another, playing together in varsity games for the past three seasons.

"We've practiced a lot together and we both have the same goals of how we really want to play and what we want to do," Nimmer said. "We both love soccer, so I think that's helped us."

Another thing that has made them capable scorers is a willingness to share the ball.

Lewis said one of the greatest strengths Timpanogos enjoys as a team is that they don't have a single player that can be shut down in order to guarantee a Timberwolves' loss. A major reason for that strength is Dickson and Nimmer are quick to get the ball to one another or another teammate if a better option exists.

"A big part of it is not being selfish," Dickson said. "If we don't have a good shot, we pass it to the other person and see if they can create something."

One thing that still eludes the high-scoring duo is a state championship trophy. Each of the past two seasons, Timpanogos has experienced the same crushing finale — a blowout loss to eventual state champion Alta in the 5A semifinals.

Now that the T-Wolves are in 4A this fall, expectations are soaring that perhaps this is the year they can finally get over that semifinal hump. Lewis thinks the difference maker this time around might be that Dickson and Nimmer are a year older and have a wealth of playoff experience to draw on now.

"They play with confidence," Lewis said. "They know they can win. They know, because of past experiences, how to play in tight situations."

Dickson will begin the next phase of her soccer career at BYU. The Cougars were her first choice all along among college teams, though she briefly considered a few other options.

Nimmer is entertaining a few scholarship offers but declined to say which schools are pursuing her.

e-mail: jcoon@desnews.com