Bella Sember

Bella Victoria Sember (born September 10, 2003) is an American professional soccer player who plays as a midfielder for Elitettan club KIF Örebro. She played college soccer for the North Carolina Tar Heels, where she won the 2024 national championship.

Bella Sember

Sember with North Carolina Courage U23 in 2024
Personal information
Full name	Bella Victoria Sember[1]
Date of birth	(2003-09-10) September 10, 2003 (age 21)
Height	5 ft 7 in (1.70 m)
Position(s)	Midfielder
Team information
Current team	KIF Örebro
College career
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2021–2024	North Carolina Tar Heels	82	(13)
Senior career*
Years	Team	Apps	(Gls)
2025–	KIF Örebro	0	(0)
International career
2019	United States U-17
*Club domestic league appearances and goals

Early life and college career

Sember grew up in Centerport, New York, the oldest of four children born to Dana Porciello and Paul Sember. She attended Harborfields High School in Greenlawn, New York. She played club soccer for New York City FC's academy.^[1] She also played futsal and was called into the futsal youth national team in 2015.^[2] She committed to the University of North Carolina as a freshman.^[3]

While in college, Sember played during the summer with WPSL's Downtown United Soccer Club in 2021 and 2022, USL W League's Long Island Rough Riders in 2023, and the USL W League champion North Carolina Courage U23 in 2024.^[4] She also helped the US Women–sponsored team win the Soccer Tournament 2024, scoring in the final.^[5]

North Carolina Tar Heels

Sember scored 2 goals in 32 appearances off the bench during her first two seasons with the North Carolina Tar Heels. She was an unused substitute as a sophomore in the 2022 national title game, where North Carolina lost to UCLA. In her junior season, she appeared in all 23 games (1 start) and scored 3 goals with 1 assist. She scored two of her goals during the NCAA tournament, including the only goal in a 1–0 win against Texas Tech in the third round, as North Carolina reached the quarterfinals.^[1] Sember played a bigger role in her senior season, becoming one of the team's captains after only 12 players returned to the team.^[6][7] She appeared in all 27 games (23 starts) and scored a team-third-high 8 goals (half of them penalties) with 4 assists. In the NCAA tournament, she opened scoring with a penalty in an 8–0 win against USC Upstate in the first round. She started the first four games of the tournament, before seeing limited minutes in the semifinal and final, as North Carolina won their 23rd national title and first since 2012.^[1][8]

Club career

KIF Örebro

Swedish club KIF Örebro announced Sember's signing on a one-year contract on January 4, 2025.^[9][10]

International career

Sember trained with the United States youth national team at the under-14, under-15, and under-17 levels from 2016 to 2020, scoring for the under-17 team against the Republic of Ireland at the UEFA Development Tournament in 2019.^[11][12]

Honors and awards

North Carolina Tar Heels

• NCAA Division I women's soccer tournament: 2024

References

1. "Bella Sember". North Carolina Tar Heels. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
2. Garcia, Andrea (July 23, 2015). "U.S. Youth Futsal 2015 National Teams Announced". Archived from the original on September 20, 2015.
3. Shealer, Sheldon (February 5, 2018). "Recruiting Roundup: Feb. 5–11". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
4. "Bella Sember". Women's Premier Soccer League. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
   "Long Island Rough Riders". USL W League. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
   "NC Courage U23". USL W League. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
5. Strand, Oliver (June 10, 2024). "$1 million goal: US Women win first Women's TST". Hudson River Blue. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
6. Moon, Emma (September 2, 2024). "'Phenomenal': Bella Sember and Tessa Dellarose set tone for UNC women's soccer". The Daily Tar Heel. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
7. Anzidei, Melanie (December 9, 2024). "UNC women's soccer wins 23rd national title, tops Wake Forest to reclaim crown". The Athletic. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
8. Koh, Michael (December 9, 2024). "UNC Women's Soccer Beats Wake Forest to Win 23rd National Championship". Chapelboro.com. Retrieved December 9, 2024.
9. "Amerikanska talangen Bella Sember klar för KIF Örebro" (in Swedish). KIF Örebro DFF. January 4, 2025. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
10. Brännmyr, Jonas (January 4, 2025). "Kif stänger truppen – med amerikansk mästare". Nerikes Allehanda (in Swedish). Retrieved January 4, 2025.
11. "Bella Sember". TopDrawerSoccer. Retrieved January 4, 2025.
12. "U.S. U-17 WNT Dominates Ireland 4–0 To Win Second Game At UEFA Development Tournament In Czech Republic". United States Soccer Federation. May 23, 2019. Retrieved January 4, 2025.

External links