Utes head coach Rich Manning calls sophomore forward Baylee Nielsen “one of the most positive energy forces that I’ve ever worked with.” As someone who likes meeting people and learning their life stories, Nielsen is known for being sociable and making friends easily.
But Nielsen’s own story reveals many more layers than what originally meets the eye. Impacted by difficult life experiences and special relationships, her personality is filled with deep and sometimes complex emotions.
The challenges for Nielsen began in the fifth grade, growing up in Alpine, Utah. Her biological father was never in the picture, and her mother had married when she was 10 months old. Though the ensuing few years were good, abandonment was about to happen again.
Her mother and stepfather filed for divorce, and though he remained involved in Nielsen’s life over the next two years, he disappeared by the time she was in eighth grade. Nielsen’s family doesn’t know where he is today.
Even though she hadn’t met her biological father, having not one but two men walk out on her family impacted Nielsen immensely.
“I was just nervous a lot, and I just expected the worst instead of good things to happen to me because of being abandoned by my dad and my parents going through a divorce and just feeling like people weren’t there permanently,” she said.
But there was one person in Nielsen’s life who was doing everything she could to keep things afloat. Believing that the best way to teach her three children was through example, Nielsen’s mother, Dayna Powell, was motivated to provide a better life for them and turn a negative situation into a positive learning experience.
“It was quite a good experience, actually. I look back on those days, and they’re just so cherished because I think you’re so raw and vulnerable,” Powell said. “That’s really all that mattered, was me and the three kids, and that was my driving force that I could do anything because they’re depending on me.”
The lesson resonated with Nielsen.
“My mom has just been my rock and my example of strength in getting through things that seem impossible,” she said. “I try to transfer that onto the field in that I can get through things. I can get through adversity, through injury, just because I’ve seen my mom do it.”
While Powell considers herself an eternal optimist, she said her daughter can give off a pessimistic vibe because she wears her emotions on her sleeve. But, more so than pessimism, Powell said genuine hurt impacts her daughter greatly.
“Once you’ve hurt her, it’s hard,” Powell said. “That’s why I think we have such a strong relationship, because I have been the constant through it all. I haven’t abandoned her.”
Even buoyed by her mother’s strength, life wasn’t easy for Nielsen as she entered her teenage years. Her mother got remarried the summer before Nielsen began eighth grade, and the family moved to Mapleton, Utah.
Much of her extended family was still in Alpine, though, and Nielsen felt alone. She struggled with feelings of depression, as she was getting used to life with a new stepfather. She admitted that “I didn’t like him so much at the beginning,” though now they are “really close.”
It was during these middle school years that soccer became Nielsen’s escape, as being on the field allowed her to forget about some of the things she was going through. It was a place she felt “perfect” and free from her life’s worries.
“I feel like in similar situations for people who go through what I’ve gone through, they either come out on top or they hit rock bottom,” she said. “I kind of took it as a growing experience. Because I had soccer to rely on and to teach me discipline and hard work, I just think it helped me find a stress reliever, and I found another way to deal with my pain and to deal with anxiety and heartbreak.”
As Nielsen’s career at Maple Mountain High School unfolded, she blossomed on the field. She was twice named to the 4A All-State First Team and led the Golden Eagles in goals as a senior with 25. She joined Manning’s squad last fall.
“I can’t imagine my life without the sport because I don’t really know what I would have turned to if I didn’t have it,” she said. “If I wouldn’t have done soccer, what group of kids would I have hung out with? What would I have turned to to relieve my stress? With soccer, drugs were never appealing, alcohol was never appealing because I wanted to keep my body healthy.”
Unfortunately for Nielsen, disappointment returned once again during her freshman season. After making her presence felt early, she was forced to miss eight of Utah’s 19 games after suffering a concussion. Another concussion followed a few months later.
Calling this time “a piece of humble pie,” Powell said these months were very trying for her daughter and she had to be reminded that there is more to life than soccer. As she got through that challenge, her mother said Nielsen became more compassionate toward others.
Still, Nielsen admittedly battles maintaining a happy attitude.
“I wish I could say I am a happy person by nature, but I almost have the mentality that I have to fake it ‘till I make it,” she said. “Really, I can be crushed and dying inside, but I try to put on a good face for other people. There are some times where I can’t really hide it. I’m a very emotional and sensitive person. I’m emotional for myself and for other people. I wear my emotions on my sleeve.”
Now three games into her sophomore campaign, Nielsen is once again off to a nice start, as she is responsible for Utah’s only two goals thus far. And even though she acknowledges her own frailties, she also recognizes that life is good.
“I’m family-oriented, and having a second family on the field, playing the sport you love, is the best thing ever,” she said. “How can you ask for more?”