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Ellie Wheeler
Wheeler with the Kansas City Current in 2024
Personal information
Full name Ellis Nicole Wheeler[1]
Date of birth (2001-12-14) December 14, 2001 (age 23)
Height 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Position(s) Right back, left back
Team information
Current team
 Kansas City Current
Number 5
College career
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2020–2023 Penn State Nittany Lions 77 (3)
Senior career*
Years Team Apps (Gls)
2024– Kansas City Current 24 (1)
International career
2020 United States U-19 1 (0)
* Club domestic league appearances and goals as of March 15, 2025

Ellis Nicole Wheeler (born December 14, 2001) is an American professional soccer player who plays as an outside back for the Kansas City Current of the National Women's Soccer League (NWSL). She played college soccer for the Penn State Nittany Lions and was selected by the Current in the second round of the 2024 NWSL Draft.

Early life and college career

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Wheeler played as a midfielder or forward growing up in Fairfax Station, Virginia. She played ECNL club soccer for FC Virginia, leading her division in scoring one year.[2][3] She committed to Penn State as a freshman over offers from programs including North Carolina and Duke.[3] TopDrawerSoccer ranked her as the 34th-best recruit of the 2020 class.[2]

Penn State Nittany Lions

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Wheeler was a four-year starter for the Penn State Nittany Lions from 2020 to 2023.[2] She was converted to a defender when she came to college, playing at wing back as a freshman and moving to center back as a sophomore.[4] As a junior, she helped the team win the 2022 Big Ten tournament.[5] She recorded 3 goals and 6 assists in 77 appearances.[2]

Club career

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Kansas City Current

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The Kansas City Current selected Wheeler 18th overall in the second round of the 2024 NWSL Draft, the team's highest pick of the night.[6] She was signed to a one-year contract with an option to extend for an additional year.[7] She made her professional debut on March 16, 2024, starting and scoring the Current's second goal in the season opener, a 5–4 home win against the Portland Thorns.[8] On August 27, her contract was extended for four years to keep her with the team through 2028.[9] She made 23 appearances (14 starts) in her rookie regular season as the Current placed fourth in the standings. She played every minute of the Current's two playoff games, ending in a 3–2 defeat to the Orlando Pride in the semifinals.[10]

International career

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Wheeler was called into training camp with the United States under-17 team in July 2018.[11] She played for the under-19 team in a friendly tournament in Spain in February–March 2020.[12] While in college, she played for the under-23 team against NWSL clubs in the 2023 preseason.[13]

Personal life

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Wheeler is the daughter of Scott and Nicole Wheeler and has two brothers.[2] Wheeler got engaged to Olympic wrestler Roman Bravo-Young at CPKC Stadium on March 15, 2025. He proposed to her on the field after the Current's season-opening victory over the Portland Thorns.[14]

Honors and awards

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Kansas City Current

Penn State Nittany Lions

References

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  1. ^ "Penn State Commencement, Summer Session 2023, Baccalaureate and Associate Degrees" (PDF). Penn State. August 12, 2023. p. 14. Retrieved August 1, 2024.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Ellie Wheeler – Women's Soccer". Penn State Nittany Lions. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  3. ^ a b Clark, Travis (March 17, 2017). "ECNL scoring ace makes 2020 commitment". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  4. ^ Lyons, Otis (August 25, 2021). "Ellie Wheeler's Defensive Improvement Key To Penn State Women's Soccer's Success". Onward State. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  5. ^ "Ellie Wheeler". Kansas City Current. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  6. ^ Sperry, Daniel (January 13, 2024). "KC Current pick versatile right-back from Penn State, 2 goalkeepers in NWSL Draft". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  7. ^ "Kansas City Current sign pair of draft picks ahead of 2024 season". Kansas City Current. March 7, 2024. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  8. ^ Sperry, Daniel (March 18, 2024). "History made & a wild game: KC Current electrify CPKC Stadium in season-opening win". The Kansas City Star. Retrieved May 2, 2024.
  9. ^ "Kansas City Current extend defender Ellie Wheeler for four years". Kansas City Current. August 27, 2024. Retrieved August 28, 2024.
  10. ^ "Ellie Wheeler 2024 Match Logs". FBref.com. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
  11. ^ "U17 WNT heads to Kansas City for camp". United States Soccer Federation. July 16, 2018. Retrieved May 2, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  12. ^ "U19 WNT roster announced for La Manga". United States Soccer Federation. February 25, 2020. Retrieved May 2, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  13. ^ "U23 WNT Roster for Thorns Tournament". United States Soccer Federation. March 3, 2023. Retrieved March 11, 2024 – via TopDrawerSoccer.
  14. ^ National Women's Soccer League [@nwsl]; (March 15, 2025). "Ellie Wheeler secures the win and a ring! 💍". Retrieved March 16, 2025 – via Instagram.
  15. ^ "Match Report: Kansas City Current win NWSL x Liga MX Femenil Summer Cup with 2-0 victory over NJ/NY Gotham FC". Kansas City Current. October 25, 2024. Retrieved November 29, 2024.
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