Monday, October 12, 2020
ELLENSBURG, Wash. – If you’re looking for a hype woman, look no further than Bella Brown.
As the Central Washington women’s soccer team hit the road for the 2019 GNAC Championships in Seattle, the bus driver told the team that it was going to be the best bus ride ever. He didn’t disappoint, playing songs from a homemade CD that got the players singing and dancing.
What happened next came as no surprise.
Brown didn’t just participate in the musical festivities. She was the ringleader.
A junior midfielder from Tumwater, Washington, Brown made her way down the aisle and to the front of the bus, when, with the permission of the driver, she took the bus’ microphone and proceeded to rap the entirety of Vanilla Ice’s “Ice Ice Baby.”
“Bob let me take the mic and obviously ‘Ice Ice Baby’ was my song of choice since I know it by heart,” Brown said. “That was one of my favorite memories to date and I feel like it really brought the energy.”
That moment wasn’t an isolated incident. It has become a tradition for Brown to energize her teammates with some singing and dancing on the bus or in the locker room before a match. And her positivity is always contagious.
“I like to dance and I would say that I’m pretty good. Just ask my teammates,” she said confidently. “I do it mostly to get people hyped up. Having a fun and light energy in the locker room calms the nerves and can get people excited to go out and play. We feed off of each other’s energy and it’s a fun environment to be in.”
The energy that Brown generated before the big tournament was enough to remind the Wildcats that they had accomplished one of the goals that they set at the beginning of the season. Now, all they needed to do was carry that same energy onto the pitch.
Brown focused so much on getting her teammates locked in that she didn’t realize that she herself was locked in. In the 32nd minute of a semifinal matchup against in-state rival and top-seeded Western Washington, she scored her first collegiate goal to tie the match.
“I just remember thinking that there was no way that just happened,” she said. “I thought it wasn’t real life. As a team, we were all on the same page. There was a special energy on the field for us that night and it is something that I will never forget.”
If there’s one person who knows Brown more than anyone else, it’s fellow junior midfielder and Tumwater native Sydney Lowe, who has been Brown’s teammate since they both first started playing soccer together in elementary school. The two have grown up as teammates and best friends and have had the unique opportunity to play together again in college.
“Bella is important to this team because she truly cares about everyone and is an all-around great role model,” Lowe said. “We can always count on her for her spirit and to bring smiles to all of our faces. She is driven and is always looking to get better every day. Off the field, she is goofy, caring and humble.”
When Brown isn’t leading the Wildcats, she is guiding the Ellensburg youth as a leader with Young Life, an organization that builds programs to allow adolescents to have fun while growing their faith and learning about Jesus Christ.
She was first introduced to Young Life in high school when her parents sent her to a summer camp in Malibu, British Columbia. It was the same camp where her parents met when they were younger, and they wanted her to experience the beauty that Young Life has to offer. Black Hills High School, Brown’s alma mater, then started its first Young Life club that following fall.
The most meaningful experience that Brown has had with Young Life came in the summer of 2018 when she went to camp with students from Ellensburg’s Morgan Middle School as a leader. It was her first time going to camp as a leader, and she had no idea about the impact that it would have on her.
“It was amazing to see these seventh-grade girls experience camp for the first time,” Brown said. “I loved being there alongside them to hear their stories and witness their pure joy. I had no idea that this experience as a leader would have such a lasting effect on me.”
Brown’s love for motivating and encouraging the people around her is monumental. With all things considered, it’s no wonder she looks forward to a future in physical education. She credits her childhood physical education teachers for inspiring her to live a healthy and active lifestyle, which evidently led to her aspirations of becoming one of them.
“I love being active and I love working with kids,” she said. “Mrs. Nagygyor of Black Lake Elementary, Mrs. Hyer-Long of Tumwater Middle and Mrs. Summers of Black Hills High all inspired me. In 10 years, I see myself working as a P.E. teacher, a high school soccer coach, an afterschool strength and conditioning coach and a Young Life leader.”
Brown loves being a Wildcat, and with two full years of college under her belt, she has made Ellensburg her home away from home.
Whether she is on the soccer field, in the classroom or out in the community, Brown is an open book. There is not much that people don’t know about her, which is what makes her the ultimate teammate and leader.
“I try to lead with love and make everyone feel welcome and appreciated,” she said. “Love is what is most important because at the end of the day, we are teammates and we have to have each other’s backs. Finding ways to lift up and support my teammates is what really matters.”