The 6-foot, 180-pound senior forward scored 23 goals and passed for two assists this past season, leading the Stags (10-8-3) to the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference Tournament championship game. The 2017 Washington Post All-Met Player of the Year, Gielen was the leading scorer for his club team, Baltimore Celtic, en route to the squad’s 2017 Under-17 U.S. Youth Soccer national championship. He concluded his prep soccer career with 52 goals and 22 assists.
Gielen has maintained a weighted 4.31 GPA in the classroom. He has made signed a national letter of intent to play soccer on scholarship at the University of Maryland beginning this fall.
A cousin of U.S. Women’s Soccer National Team midfielder Allie Long, Gielen has volunteered locally with the Special Olympics in addition to donating his time as a youth soccer and basketball coach. “Justin is an extremely athletic and talented kid,” said Chris Jennings, head coach of Bishop O’Connell High. “His athleticism and ability in the air is unparalleled. He can out-jump anyone on set pieces and corners. That’s where he usually gets his goals.”
