American University volleyball head coach Ahen Kim remembers the moment he decided Bella Marrero was going to be a part of his team. It was the Girls Junior National Championships in Baltimore in 2023. This was the second time he had seen her play that year, and Kim was so impressed that he asked her to come to American’s volleyball camp after nationals.
“She came to camp for one day, and then a couple weeks later, I said, ‘Do you want to be a part of this team?’ And she said ... ‘I would love to,’” Kim said.
Now the No. 9 ranked player in Southern California for digs in a single season is the starting libero on American University’s team as a freshman.
Growing up in Burbank, California, her mom, Fiorella, recalls that Bella started playing volleyball at the age of five. She was playing gymnastics and soccer at the same time. At the age of eight, Bella met the USA women’s national volleyball team at a scrimmage in California, and that is when she fell in love with the sport.
Her Peruvian Cuban heritage also helped guide Marrero into the sport. Volleyball is a major sport in Peru and Cuba, and from the time Marrero and her younger sister were toddlers, Fiorella said that the Olympics, the International Volleyball Federation and volleyball matches were always on the TV.
Marrero knew that her socioeconomic circumstances meant that she did not always get to participate in a few of the opportunities that some of her peers did, but she did not let that stand in her way.
Marrero recalled a time from middle school when there was a school astronomy museum trip that “financially, [they] weren’t able to accommodate for it,” she said.
“And so I was talking to my teachers about things I could do outside of class to potentially be a part of the trip…and so I kept working hard, I was doing a lot of extra assignments…it was just so I could also like, find ways to be incorporated or be a part of the experience,” she said. “And I think after a few weeks of work, or even a few months…I was actually able to go.”
This work ethic is something that struck Kim. Marrero, he said, “probably asks for more extra reps than anyone else in the team, so she is kind of single-handedly redefining what working hard means.”
Marrero’s mom looked back on another moment where her resilience and work ethic allowed her to overcome adversity, and that was during the very thick of the coronavirus pandemic. She was “overcoming a prolonged injury (a sprained ankle) during the end of her 15s season, and despite all of the pain, she fought through the toughest division, the 15-Open.” Marrero not only made it to the Girls Junior National Championships, but she was the only libero selected for the honor of the USA-All Tournament Team.
She has the stats to show for it. Marrero is currently ranked first on the American volleyball team for digs, third in assists, second in service aces and 10th in the Patriot League for service aces. Yet, this does not affect her humble nature, or change her goals and intention behind every play. Kelsey Kim, Marrero’s best friend outside of AU, describes how Marrero’s nature as a friend bleeds into how she plays.
“Throughout my whole life, she’s been there for me and our other friends through thick and thin, and this quality directly translates to volleyball, as she plays for her teammates,” Kelsey said.
Her humility, which Kim shared has actually increased as she has improved throughout the season, is something that really stands out to everyone who has interacted with her.
“I’m trying to gas her up a little bit like ‘hey, you are the bro, come on!’...but I don’t want her to lose her humbleness, ‘cause she just knows how to put her head down and work,’” Kim said.
Marrero channels her hard work into other areas outside of volleyball. Her multicultural heritage has shaped her perspective on volleyball and her goals for the sport, and in turn, what hopes she has for the sport at large. She was a part of the Latinos Unidos club back in California, where she worked to “help combat issues of racism and colorism.”
Her mom discussed that because of her heritage, she believes that “no matter what background you come from, what language you speak, what economic circumstances you may have, that anything is possible with hard work, sacrifice and passion.”
For Marrero, it is a “huge honor and a privilege, and I’m so glad I’m in this position…as I got older, I realized, like, oh, there’s not many people like me, being a minority (in the sport). Since I have a younger sister, I’ve been really aiming to do whatever I can, to inspire.”
She emphasized the importance of perseverance when discussing her role as a leader in the sport, particularly for young athletes who lack access to certain opportunities. “I just want them to know, just keep going, as long as you keep pursuing and just not giving up, things will happen,” she shared.
As she looks to the future, her dream for herself is “potentially reaching at least 1,000 digs. I think that would be really cool. And breaking some record would be really nice, to leave my impact.”
But for now her sights are set on the Patriot League Championships, where she hopes to bring a championship ring home for the seniors before they leave.
This story was edited by Penelope Jennings, Delaney Hoke and Abigail Turner. Copy editing done by Luna Jinks, Emma Brown, Sabine Kanter-Huchting and Nicole Kariuki.
