The One to Watch

Bella Reese leaves her mark on Dora High School

Words by Jenny Lynn Davis | Images by Ryan McGill

When Dora and Cordova meet on the court, the stakes are always high. On a December night in 2023, the gym at Dora High School was packed and the crowd was electric as the Bulldogs faced off against their fiercest rival. Point guard Bella Reese was in her element. With nearly every possession, she added points to the board, driving her team forward to a long-anticipated victory. But as she dominated the court with a natural ease, she was soon pulled from the game for a timeout.

“Just a break,” she thought. Then came the applause. Confused, Bella looked up and saw a line of children walking toward her, each holding a numeric balloon. Together, they spelled out “1,000.”

Only then did Bella realize what had happened: with her last basket, she had joined Dora’s 1,000-point club. Her coach made the announcement, and the crowd erupted in cheers. And Bella, who scored 24 points that night to lead her team to victory over their biggest rival, sat in stunned silence for a moment, soaking it all in.

“I didn’t even know I was that close,” she says, reflecting on the memory. “It was just the grace of God. I had told myself going in that I was just going to play my hardest.”

While moments like that one shine in the spotlight, in an Ella’s case, they’re only the surface of a deeper story.

As a four-sport athlete at Dora, Bella has a full calendar year-round with basketball, volleyball, track, and cheer. She has earned a shelf of accolades including First Team All-County in volleyball, All-State and MVP honors in basketball, a state placement in the 4x100 relay, recognition as a Universal Cheerleaders Association All-American, and even an invitation to play in the Alabama High School Athletic Association’s 2025 North-South All-Star basketball game.

But ask her what matters most, and she’ll point to her teammates.

“The people I play with and the friendships I’ve made bring me so much joy and just help me to be a better person,” she says.

Still, she’s fiercely competitive. She thrives in tight games and fourth-quarter moments where the coach calls her number and the game’s outcome rests on her shoulders. She loves the intensity, the adrenaline, and the responsibility, and she leans into it without hesitation.

Bella’s fearless mindset has been years in the making. She started varsity basketball in seventh grade. At the time, she was scoring just a couple of points per game. Then came the 5 a.m. workouts with her trainer, Kimani Key. The sweat sessions were so tough, Bella wanted to quit after the first one. But she stuck with it and slowly but surely, everything began to change. She improved as a player and matured as an individual. By the time her junior season approached, she was dropping close to 30 points a game and stepping into the kind of leadership that can only come from solid support and motivation.

Behind the scenes, Bella’s strongest supporter has always been her mom, Adriane. Their bond is deep and began with a miracle.

“I was in a bad car accident when I was pregnant with her,” Adriane recalls. “I didn’t think either of us were going to make it. She came early and spent time in the NICU. One day, they called me in because she had stopped breathing. As soon as I got to her, she suddenly let out a scream and started breathing again, and she’s been full of life ever since.”

From that moment on, the two have been practically inseparable. When the demands of Bella’s sports schedule, and that of her older sister Mikalyn, clashed with Adriane’s work schedule, she left her position of 15 years at the local hospital to become a substitute teacher at Dora High School. Today, she works with special needs students at the school and gets to see Bella every day. A quick hug during class changes is a common occurrence, and Bella knows if she needs anything during the school day, mom is only a few doors down.

When Bella competes in a pageant (yes, she does those, too) it’s Adriane cheering her on as she practices her practice her tap dance routines with choreographer Brooklyn Tubbs. When Bella jokes about her love for shopping, it’s Adriane who laughs and calls her “Big Money.” And when Bella speaks about her life and achievements, she never leaves mom out of the story.

Of course, Bella’s success isn’t limited to athletics. She holds a 4.0 grade point average and ranks in the top 15% of her class. She is the president of the Student Government Association, a graduate of Youth Leadership Walker County, a representative of the Superintendent’s Council and the Walker County Schools Strategic Planning Committee, and a student voice for the local Chamber of Commerce. She’s also Miss Dora High and Miss Bulldog, and has her eyes on the triple crown of homecoming queen for her senior year.

Bella is proud of her academic accomplishments, but more than anything, she is proud of the balance she has learned to maintain. She credits her faith for keeping her grounded.

“This past year, I’ve leaned on God more than ever,” she says. “I’ve learned to trust that He’ll put me where I need to be.”

Where she’s going next is still undecided. College offers are on the horizon, and she is weighing her options based on basketball, volleyball, and academic fit. She plans to major in business and is flirting with the idea of a sports broadcasting minor to help her stay close to the game after her college days come to an end.

Still, she is mindful of how far she has come and how much she has grown. She is quick to laugh, deeply thoughtful, and wonderfully self-aware as she jokes about having “the heart of a singer, but definitely not the voice.”

Perhaps those are the qualities that set Bella apart more than her athletic and academic prowess. She doesn’t settle. She doesn’t slow down. She is proud of her leadership, her faith, her kindness, and her ability to succeed despite any circumstance trying to stand in her way.

“I didn’t think I’d make it through some of the things I’ve faced, but I did, and I kept being me. I came a long way and beat the odds just by being Bella,” she says.

And that, more than any trophy or crown, is how she will be remembered at Dora High School. 78