Black Hills State softball and head coach Aubrey Voboril have announced five new additions for the 2023 season.

"As we've continued to add to our team this summer, the versatility, strength, and character of this group of young women stands out," said Voboril. "All five have the potential to be difference makers at their respective positions, so we're excited to have them joining our family and are thrilled to see the impact they will make here at Black Hills State."

Lexi Apodaca
Apodaca is a junior infielder transferring from Daytona State College where she most recently totaled 11 hits over 60 at-bats while drawing eight walks, driving in four, and scoring 10 runs.

She spent her freshman year at Otero Junior College where she hit .420 over 36 games, slugging 10 home runs and totaling 46 RBI, 37 runs scored and five stolen bases.

Before that she played at Brighton High School in Colorado. There, she hit a career .440 over 85 career games, totaling 109 hits and 96 RBI with 116 runs scored and 11 home runs. Defensively, she held a .949 fielding percentage at third base. Apodaca played in the 2019 CCGS All-State Game and was named First Team All-Conference that year.

Taylor Klein
Klein is also a junior infield transfer, who will be coming from Western Nebraska Community College. As a sophomore, she hit .320 over 51 games, going 48-150 with four home runs, 12 doubles and three triples, and also drove in 34 RBI and scored 32 runs. Klein also drew 14 walks to nine strikeouts while swiping six bags.

Her freshman season was at Otero Junior College where she earned Academic All-Conference and hit .412 in eight games, going 7-17 with four doubles. She scored four runs while driving in five and drew three walks to her two strikeouts.

Prior to that, Klein prepped at Scottsbluff High School in Nebraska where she was named All-Conference all four years, and Second Team All-State in her junior and senior years. She started varsity all four years and hit .584 her senior year. Her mother, Sara, played basketball at BHSU.

Adreanna Lance
Lance is a junior catcher transfer from Barton Community College after appearing in 43 games as a sophomore while batting .319. She slugged nine home runs and nine doubles, driving in 33 runs while scoring 22. Lance held an OBP of .388 and a .629 slugging, and also recorded a .992 fielding percentage behind the plate and threw out two runners caught stealing.

Prior to that, she played at Cherokee Trail High School where she helped the team to a state championship runner-up finish in 2019. Lance was also named Academic All-State First Team and Centennial All-League as a senior.

Kayla Lee
Lee is a junior outfield transfer from Texas A&M University at Texarkana where she most recently hit .286 and went 8-28 in 27 games. She slugged a triple and a home run while totaling seven RBI and 15 runs scored. Lee added six walks to four strikeouts and nabbed seven stolen bases.

Before that, Lee played at Cloud County Community College and was named First-Team All-KJCCC after appearing in and starting all 36 games. She finished with a team-best .482 batting average and led CCC with 54 hits in 112 at-bats, along with a team-best 40 stolen bases. She slugged seven home runs to go along with five doubles, five triples, and 25 runs driven in. In 2020 she appeared in 11 games, recording 17 hits in 42 at-bats with two doubles, three triples, and a team-best three home runs. Lee also totaled 12 RBI and 16 runs scored before the season was cut short due to COVID-19.

Lee prepped at Kearney Catholic High School where she was a three-sport athlete for the Stars, an honorable-mention all-conference selection, second-team Kearney Hub All-Area team and Nebraska Class C1 Honorable-Mention All-State selection.

Ashlynn Pauwels
Pauwels is a sophomore infield transfer from LSU Alexandria where she appeared in 46 games as a freshman and hit .302, going 39-129. She smacked 16 doubles, a triple and a home run while driving in 24 runs and scoring 28, and also drew six walks and carried an OBP of .333.

Prior to that, Pauwels was Chiles High School Offensive Player of the Year as a freshman and senior andTallahassee Democrat All-Big Bend Player of the Year as a senior. She was also named FACA All-State and Miracle Sports 6A All State Second Team as a senior and USA Today High School Sports Award Florida Panhandle Honoree. As a sophomore, Pauwels was named Tallahassee Democrat All-Big Bend Honorable Mention.