WINDSOR, Ont. - St. Clair College's Skyler Patteson (Guelph, Ont.) is the 2014 Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) women's softball player of the year. She received the award in a ceremony held in Windsor, Ont. on Thursday evening.

Patteson led the OCAA in three key offensive categories. Her 34 hits set a new single-season OCAA record. The first baseman also led all players with a .523 batting average and 25 RBI. Patteson also scored 18 runs, and stole five bases. Patteson struck out only once all season. She is also an OCAA league all-star.

Lauren Ruf (Cambridge, Ont.) of Conestoga College is the OCAA pitcher of the year. Ruf was second in the league with 52 strikeouts. Her 9-1 record led the OCAA and she was fourth among pitchers with 61 innings of work, resulting in an ERA of 2.41. She is also an OCAA all-star.

Outfielder Kady Hawkins (London, Ont.) of Fanshawe College is the OCAA rookie of the year. Hawkins was third in the league with a .500 batting average, and second among players with 30 hits. She stole seven bases, one shy of the OCAA leader. She is also an OCAA league all-star.

Conestoga's Ron Taylor is the OCAA coach of the year. The Condors soared at the top of the OCAA standings for most of the season before finishing in third place. Their 12-6 record is a significant improvement over last year, when they were 7-8. Conestoga was second in the league with a .371 batting average, and third in ERA at 3.47.

Conestoga leads the OCAA in all-stars with three. Joining Ruf are infielder Brittany Bell (New Hamburg, Ont.) and outfielder Tori Taylor (Kitchener, Ont.).

Rounding out the OCAA all-stars are third baseman Katrina Gammie (Guelph, Ont.) and catcher Justine Pike (Whitby, Ont.) of Durham College; outfielder/second baseman Rachel Dotzert (Stratford, Ont.) of Fanshawe; outfielder Elisa Gregoris (Mississauga, Ont.) of Humber College; and Alexa Georgiou (Windsor, Ont.) of St. Clair.

2014 OCAA WOMEN'S SOFTBALL AWARDS

OCAA Women's Softball Player of the Year
Skyler Patteson, St. Clair

OCAA Women's Softball Pitcher of the Year
Lauren Ruf, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Softball League Batting Champion
Skyler Patteson, St. Clair

OCAA Women's Softball Rookie of the Year
Kady Hawkins, Fanshawe

OCAA Women's Softball Coach of the Year
Ron Taylor, Conestoga

OCAA Women's Softball League All-Stars
Brittany Bell, Conestoga
Lauren Ruf, Conestoga
Tori Taylor, Conestoga
Katrina Gammie, Durham
Justine Pike, Durham
Rachel Dotzert, Fanshawe
Kady Hawkins, Fanshawe
Elisa Gregoris, Humber
Alexa Georgiou, St. Clair
Skyler Patteson, St. Clair

- OCAA -

ABOUT ONTARIO COLLEGES ATHLETIC ASSOCIATION

The Ontario Colleges Athletic Association (OCAA) is a recognized leader in intercollegiate athletics in the province, dedicated to student athlete and sport development. The OCAA has 30 members sponsoring 11 sports.

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Ontario Colleges Athletic Association
Tel: 416-426-7041
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E-mail: bell-webster@ocaa.com