PC's Gladys Wiechman chosen for Olympic development Ohio team

Port Clinton rising junior Gladys Wiechman was one of 18 girls in her age group selected to Ohio's Olympic Development Program soccer team. "Very prestigious in regards to how much time she's put in to the sport of soccer," Port Clinton coach Paco Romero said. "I believe she's the first one in our area to ever make it this far." Wiechman made the squad through a tryout process that concluded last week. That was Stage 4 of a multi-step process to making the Ohio ODP team. The rosters were unveiled Monday. With the selection to the state team also comes an invite for Wiechman to the U.S. Youth Soccer Association Region II Camp this weekend in the Dayton area. "My brother Juan is the one that mentioned it to her," Romero said. "I know they were working on getting that program back up on its feet. It's very difficult to get in there. We're very happy with what she's done so far." As a sophomore for Port Clinton in 2021, Wiechman set the school's new single-season assists record with 17. That helped PC to its winningest girls soccer season — Port Clinton concluded the season at 14-3-0. Wiecheman generally operated out of an attacking midfield position for Port Clinton in 2021. She's adept with the ball at her feet and with playing pinpoint passes both on the ground and through the air. Wiechman also was Port Clinton's most dangerous shot-taker from long distance. "Her vision, her drive on the field and her technical abilities make her different from a lot of the girls in our area," Romero said. Gladys Wiechman gets on the board for @pcskins. 5-0 with 16:35 to play. @gladys62264874 pic.twitter.com/llranjoGnK — Billy Heyen (@BillyHeyen) October 13, 2021 Wiechman is equally comfortable shooting with both feet. She swings in dangerous corner kicks with her preferred right foot, but scored multiple goals as a sophomore with her left. "She's always going to learn," Romero said. "Her ability to learn and adapt to different styles of play will become her strong suit." Already a huge contributor for Port Clinton last fall, Wiechman will step into an even larger role as a junior following the graduation of Katerina Fillmore, who set the school's single-season goals record as a senior. PC's attack will remain dangerous in 2022 as it also returns Jade Mitchell, Gracie Rohrer, Morgan Woods, Amelia Finn and Morgan Delhees. Wiechman will have plenty of opportunities to create more goals. "She's got two more years with us, and we'll see how far she goes in regards to continuing to be a strong asset to our program," Romero said. All the ODP teams are composed of players from the same birth year. The Ohio squad Wiechman is a part of is comprised of players born in the year 2006. The U.S. Youth Soccer Olympic Development Program was founded in 1977 with the intention of improving the country's level of soccer from the ground up. State teams compete against each other as part of the competition and help feed regional and national player pools. The 2006 roster Wiechman made includes players from all over Ohio, including Cleveland St. Joseph's Academy's Macy Koehler and Avon's Skylar Kruszka. Hilliard Darby placed both Keilah Muldrow and Kaitlyn Rogowski on the team. "This is great for our area, and it's great for our program," Romero said. "I'm very proud of her. She's got very supportive parents who have instilled a lot of time and effort... She's a very humble girl. She just works."