Soccer standout signs to play for Gillette College

A former Lady Wolves soccer standout will be continuing her college career as a Pronghorn. 

Ellie Kettering recently signed her letter of intent to play soccer at Gillette College - a decision she is "really excited" about.

Kettering started her college soccer career at Casper College last fall, but decided it wasn't the place for her. She came home for the semester and had surgery at the beginning of the year, which she's been recovering from. However, she's been ready to find the right place to keep playing. 

Other schools have also been looking to snag Kettering for their teams. Within a 24-hour time period, she received three separate offers. One that stood out was Gillette College. 

"I went on a visit and I just absolutely fell in love with the campus there," Kettering said of Gillette. "The coach was amazing." 

Entering the team with some college experience already under her belt will give Kettering a unique perspective and advantage. 

"I'm very excited to go into a leadership role, because I'm a transfer technically, so I kind of know the conference, I know some of the players and the teams and everything," Kettering explained. "So I'm excited to go in knowing all that and being able to help restart a program in that role."

Kettering has been building on the already significant experience and success she had during her high school career for the Lady Wolves. 

"I was the leading goal scorer for the team last year," she said. "I was the offensive MVP and a team captain. I think those were definitely some highlights. And just playing with all my friends that I grew up with was awesome."

For Kettering, playing soccer has always been something she does because she loves it, starting from when she was little and would play with her sister. Now, she's excited to keep doing what she loves, "continually getting better and just not giving up." 

She also hopes to see how far she can take her skills and career. 

"College soccer is pretty hard, no matter what level it's at, but just continuing to get better and maybe move on farther than a juco (junior college), I think that's a big goal," Kettering said. "And then just continuing to grow as a person as well."

When it comes to personal growth, Kettering is thankful for everything she's learned from playing soccer. 

"I think it's taught me a lot of things," she said. "It's taught me hard work and dedication and a lot of stuff that you can't learn without doing a sport."