R. Kerdiya Tabbed OEC's Best Defensive Player, Patlan Earns First Team Honors

Two softball student-athletes earned All-Conference recognition highlighted by Raneem Kerdiya being named the OEC Defensive Player of the Year (Photos by Reyes Silva Cruz).
Two softball student-athletes earned All-Conference recognition highlighted by Raneem Kerdiya being named the OEC Defensive Player of the Year (Photos by Reyes Silva Cruz).
April 29, 2024

A pair of sophomores that were stationed in the top three of the Santiago Canyon College softball team's lineup earned Orange Empire Conference (OEC) All-Conference honors at the conclusion of the regular season. Catcher Raneem Kerdiya was tabbed the conference's Defensive Player of the Year and a Second-Team All-Conference member, while sophomore center fielder Alyssa Patlan was named to the First-Team All-Conference squad.

R. Kerdiya earned the Defensive Player of the Year crown after acting as the most reliable backstop in the conference. In her second and final season with the Hawks, R. Kerdiya posted a .956 fielding percentage that included 120 putouts and 160 total chances. She was responsible for handling the pitching efforts of sophomore Madison Lee and freshman, and sister, Nadeen Kerdiya that posted a conference ERA below four runs per game.

Offensively, she was the primary three-hole hitter and posted a .277 batting average that included a team-high five homeruns and nine doubles. She paced her team with 14 extra base hits and was second on the squad with 23 RBI. She shared the team lead in slugging percentage with a .532 clip while posting a .357 on-base percentage. She finished the season belting five hits in the final for games which included a pair of multi-hit games.

Patlan, the primary leadoff hitter, was a menace throughout the entire season as she led her squad with a .389 batting average, .532 slugging percentage, .466 on-base percentage, 49 hits and four triples. She only struck out four times in a team-high 126 at-bats and drew 12 walks which tied for second on the team.

In conference, she ranked third overall in hits and eighth overall in batting average.  She was tied for second in triples and seventh overall in on-base percentage.

She did not miss a single game and reached base safely in the last 11 games of the season. She held a 12-game hitting streak in the middle of the season where she went 18-for-38 (.474) with 11 RBI. Furthermore, she swiped 22 bases which ranked second on the team and third in the conference.