Camera file photo

Nikki Marshall, left, scored a team-record 17 goals for CU last fall, but is broadening her horizons with the national team this year.

Few who saw the speedy Nikki Marshall blow by defenders for 17 goals as a freshman at the University of Colorado last fall would say there's a need for much improvement.

Marshall is a little harder on herself.

That's one reason why her journey with the United States U20 national team has been so valuable this summer.

Marshall is one of 18 players representing the United States in the Pan Am Games, which begin today in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She has been with the team all summer, but scoring goals has been far from her mind.

Marshall attended tryout camps with the U21 and U20 teams earlier this year and said she wasn't good enough to play forward with either team. But when coach Jill Ellis, also head coach of the UCLA Bruins, asked Marshall to play defense, she jumped at the chance to broaden her soccer skills.

"I hope to just get better in general so that I can come back in the fall and bebetter for my team," Marshall said via e-mail from Brazil this week. "I say this all the time, but I want to be a soccer player, not just a runner. I want to play like the Lauren Cheneys (UCLA) and the Tobin Heaths (North Carolina) of this team."

Marshall has played center back exclusively for the U20 team, which also made a trip to England in May, and said the transition has been trying but a good experience overall.

"Playing defender is difficult, much more so than playing forward," she said. "I nevertheless love playing in the back and I learn more and more every day.

"The experience has been absolutely amazing, definitely a blessing. The girls at the camps are the best in the age group and I learn so much from them every minute I step onto the field. This is by far the quickest, most intense level of soccer I have ever been a part of."

The U20 team will certainly have its work cut out in Brazil.

Several of the countries in attendance have sent their full national teams rather than youth teams like the United States did.

Colorado coach Bill Hempen said Marshall's involvement with the U20 team benefits the Buffs beyond Xs and Os. Former CU forward Katie Griffin played with the U21 squad last summer, and former midfielder Fran Munnelly went to camp with the senior national team a couple of years ago.

"It kind of gets an awareness out there for our program," Hempen said. "I think it has made a difference in the kinds of kids who are inquiring about our program, kids who do have national team experience."

Ever the team player, Marshall said she wouldn't be opposed to dabbling as a defender when she came back to CU this fall. But she knows that's probably not likely.

Said Hempen: "I think anybody in these parts would think I was an absolute buffoon if I put her anywhere but up front. But if (at some point) we had two of them up there or someone else that can score 17 goals, maybe we could move her around a little bit."