Cariel Ellis inks with Mississippi State University

Cariel Ellis of Madison, a freshman forward from the state and region champion, Holmes Community College Lady Bulldogs, signed on to play with Mississippi State University during a ceremony Dec. 10 on the Holmes Ridgeland Campus.

Ellis recently became the first Holmes women's soccer player to be named to the 2019 NJCAA Division I Women's Soccer All-America Team. She was named Second Team last week by the NJCAA. The Lady Bulldogs captured their first-ever MACJC State Championship and first-ever Region XXIII Championship during the 2019 season finishing 18-3 overall.

The Madison Central product dominated the MACJC this season. Of the 21 matches played, she scored multiple goals in 16 of those. For the season, Ellis finished third in the NJCAA with 48 goals including five game winners. She was 20th in assists in the NJCAA with 15 and was third in points with 111 and third in shots with 155.

Ellis decided between Mississippi State and Tennessee. "After a long thought process, I've decided to go with Mississippi State," Ellis said she unzipped her Holmes hoodie revealing an MSU t-shirt.

"I picked Mississippi State because that's what was in my heart, and I connected more to the coaches and the team," she said. "State was always my dream school. First off, it wouldn't be possible without my teammates, my family and the whole support system I had here. It basically took a lot of support and confidence."

She said her confidence level is something she's had to work on over the years. "To be honest, I always doubted myself," Ellis said. "I had to overcome that with the help of my parents and my coaches telling me stuff. I overcame that and know I could play in the SEC. I set a goal and prayed about it so that's what I did."

Ellis said she is thankful for her year at Holmes. "I wanted to develop more as a player and build my confidence level," Ellis said. "Wesley told me I would come in and kill it, and I believed he could help me get to the next level, and he did just that. He's such a great coach. I knew he would definitely help me."

She added that she is very pleased with the success Holmes had this season. "I am surprised, but I knew coming in with the team we had and the chemistry we had, we would make it far."

"We are very happy for you, but we are sad to lose you," said Holmes Associate Head Coach Wesley Noble. "We know you are going where you are going to be happy, where you are going to excel and we knew all along the potential you had to get to this level. We can't wait to watch you kill it."

Noble said when he first saw Ellis, he knew she was a special player. "When I first saw Cariel she had things you can't teach," Noble said. "We knew we wanted to get her. I thought she was very under-recruited for how good she could be and how good she was.

"I wanted her to be a killer," he said. "I wanted her to take over games. That's where we really took her game to another level. She had all the gifts and all the training. She didn't know how good she could be on the field so we had to help her get it out."

Noble said seeing Ellis sign with a Division I school is huge for Ellis and the women's soccer program.

"She had numerous offers," he explained. "The way she handled herself and those offers was very professional and mature for her age. I told her to go where she'd be happy and excel. She chose MSU, and we are happy about that - plus I get to go watch her now.

"It's great for the program. It's another step forward. For us to be able to put one in the SEC, especially to a state school with the kind of offer that she's getting, is very good and opens up a lot of doors. It shows what we can do when players come here and are under-recruited as Cariel was."

Noble said Holmes' success came from the fact the team was very close-knit. "Everybody sees the success we had on the field, but a lot of it comes from who they are as people," he said. "This has been the tightest knit group that we've ever had. They get along. They are truly a family. Everybody has done their part. They've done a good job handling everything they've accomplished. We have several others who have committed to some great programs from this group as well.  We can't wait to announce these in early spring."

Head Soccer Coach Matt Convertino also expressed his excitement over Ellis' signing and the impact it will have. "Cariel's signing is a fantastic milestone for our program, but also, on a larger picture, it is indicative of the great things that are going on here at Holmes within our women's soccer program," Head Soccer Coach Matt Convertino said. "Associate Head Coach Wesley Noble does a fantastic job not only recruiting some of the top talent in the area, but also with the way he handles the players on a daily basis and develops them and helps get them to the next level. We're really excited for this day."

Mississippi State is coming off of one of its most successful seasons in program history. A year after making their first NCAA Tournament appearance, the Bulldogs reached the SEC Tournament for the first time in 15 years finishing with a record of 8-8-3 overall.

Head Coach James Armstrong led State to program records in goals, assists and points in SEC play while posting the third-best winning percentage in conference play in school history.

MSU added eight players on National Signing Day on Nov. 13 with more players expected to be named in the coming days.

"We are thrilled to add these players to our Mississippi State soccer family," Armstrong said. "This 2020 class ticks all of the boxes in terms of character and quality. All of them will complement our current group perfectly in every aspect and we cannot wait to welcome them on campus soon."