University of North Georgia Athletics

Sally Bell has been a longtime supporter of North Georgia Athletics, but her reach and impact in the collegiate athletics landscape goes far beyond Dahlonega. Sally began officiating high school basketball in 1975 and only four years later in 1979 she moved on to NAIA and NJCAA games. The year 1981 would mark the first year she officiated Division I and II basketball games.
 
In 1996 she was named the Naismith College Women's Basketball Official of the Year. In her officiating career, she officiated 15 NCAA Division I Women's Final Fours, including 13 consecutive from 1993-2004. Bell was the coordinator of women's basketball officials for six different conferences (Atlantic Sun, OVC, SEC, Southland, SWAC and Sunbelt).  
 
In recent years, Bell has been an integral part of UNG Athletics and has held board member positions on the UNG Athletics Hall of Fame board, as well as the Nighthawks Athletic Club board. She has also served as a mentor to several Peach Belt Conference basketball officials for numerous years. Bell was inducted into the Georgia Sports Hall of Fame in 2012 and in 2017 was inducted into the Women's Basketball Hall of Fame.