Carson Judd (Baseball) and Aliyah Finch (Women's Basketball) took home YVC's 2022-23 Student-Athlete of the Year awards at Wednesday's year-end ceremony held at Sherar Gymnasium.

Finch is the recipient of the Mary Sherar award signifying the top female athlete of the year.  A freshman from Chelan, she pulled off an amazing trifecta of NWAC East Region women's basketball awards.  She was named the region's Most Valuable Player, Freshman of the Year, and Defensive Player of the Year.  In 2022-23, she led the entire conference in total rebounds (403) and rebounding average (14.4 per game) while also leading the team in scoring (19.1 ppg) and blocked shots (1.5 per game).  In addition, she was selected as the "NWAC Competitive Athletics" Player of the Week for the week of January 2-8, 2023.  Aliyah maintains a 3.7 GPA and has been named to the Dean's List in each quarter she's been a YVC student.  Says Head Coach Robin Andrea, "Aliyah is one of the rare student-athletes that when she says she wants to be great, she means it.  Her work ethic and competitiveness is only matched by her love for her teammates and her joy for playing the game.  She is truly one of one."  Aliyah has signed to play for Central Washington Unversity (NCAA D2) in the 2023-24 academic year.

Judd is the  recipient of the Larry Densley award that indicates Yakima Valley College's male athlete of the year.  A sophomore from Central Valley of Spokane, he was named to the NWAC East Region's First Team as a Pitcher.  For the season, he posted a 3.08 ERA and overall 5-3 record.  He was 7^th in the entire NWAC with 86 strikeouts (in 81 innings pitched) during the 2023 season.  Carson was also named to the NWAC All-Academic Team and has maintained a 3.5 GPA while being named to the Dean's List three times over the course of his YVC career.  Says Head Baseball Coach Ben Krueger, "Carson was the foundational piece of our pitching staff and was solid as a rock.  We could always count on a quality start to give us the best chance for victory.  As a lefty, his best days are ahead of him and we look forward to watching him grow!"  Carson has signed to play for Washington State University (NCAA D1) in the 2023-24 academic year.

The pair will have their honors re-presented at the Yakima Valley Sports Commission's annual "Sports Awards" ceremony held on Wednesday, June 7 at 7 pm at the Yakima Convention and Event Center.