Bella Atkinson is in her first season as a member of the Redbird softball coaching staff.

Atkinson was a two-year standout for the Redbirds during the 2025 and 2026 seasons. During her senior campaign in 2026, she earned NFCA Division I All-Midwest Region First-Team honors and was named an All-MVC First-Team selection. Atkinson delivered one of the top offensive campaigns in the conference, batting .401 with 69 hits, 45 RBI, 17 doubles and 10 home runs across 51 starts. The East Troy, Wis., native posted a .461 on-base percentage and a .674 slugging percentage while recording 20 multi-hit games, including a two-home run, six-RBI outing against Valparaiso and a four-RBI performance versus Northern Iowa. Atkinson's 17 doubles are tied for the fourth-most in a single season in program history, and she became just the fifth Redbird to record at least 40 hits, 40 runs scored and 40 RBI in a season. 

In her first season with the Redbirds in 2025, Atkinson started 53 games recording 29 hits, including four doubles and two home runs on the year. She posted six multi-hit games and recorded 66 putouts and 118 assists in 200 total chances in the field.

Atkinson transferred to ISU after spending two seasons to start her collegiate career at Lakeland CC. In 2021, she led her team to the NJCAA Region 24 Championship game, where she went four-for-four with two doubles and caught the last out of the game to bring her team to the NJCAA National Tournament in Yuma, Arizona.

During her prep career, Atkinson was a four-year varsity starter for East Troy HS softball and a captain in her senior year. She played travel softball for the Wisconsin Lightning from 12U-18U.