SIOUX FALLS, S.D. – Augustana head softball coach Gretta Melsted has announced the addition of NJCAA All-American Nicole Bellis to the 2022 roster.
 
Bellis, hailing from Urbandale, Iowa, spent the past two seasons at Indian Hills Community College where she earned All-America honors after hitting .471 as a sophomore. Along with the high average, she belted 18 home runs, tallied 15 doubles and set a school record of 101 RBI in 54 games.
 
"I am excited to have Nicole join the Augustana Softball family," Melsted said. "She had a tremendous career at Indian Hills Community College. She is such a good fit for us and for our university, academically, athletically and character wise.
 
"I look forward to having her join our team and being part of a great group of motivated and talented players. She will be fun to watch compete at our level."
 
She earned two NJCAA National Player of the Week honors and earned the Iowa Community College Athletic Conference Player of the Year.
 
In addition to her prowess on the field, she is an NJCAA All-Academic First Team honoree. She graduated this past year with an associate of arts degree.
 
Bellis graduated high school from Dowling Catholic in May of 2019.
 
The addition of Bellis brings Melsted's 2021 recruiting class to six joining Andrea Cain, Liz Dierks, Sydney Herbert, Hailey Houston and Summer Stoll who signed their National Letters of Intent in November.