Clay Cederquist has been playing baseball as long as he can remember, learning from his dad and brother as a little boy. He played baseball on multiple summer league teams and throughout high school. Cederquist remembers his most memorable moment playing baseball was in his junior year.

“We won the Valley Championships against Bakersfield Christian,” he says.

At 21 years old, Cederquist has a long list of awards and accomplishments as a baseball player. In high school, he was two-time First Team All-Fresno Bee, Division V State Player of the Year, and the West Sequoia League MVP.

Recently, Clay was named to the Pre-son All State Baseball team. “I don’t remember all of the rewards I have received because the awards are extra, they don’t really matter,” Cederquist said.

Despite sitting out his senior year due to a torn labrum muscle in his shoulder, Cederquist was a top pick for Division 1 colleges such as University of California Berkeley, California State University San Diego, Cal Poly, UC Irvine, California State University Fresno, and Santa Clara University. His top two choices were Fresno and Santa Clara.

Cederquist said he decided to sign with Fresno State. “It was a place that my friends and family could go watch me play,” he said. “I also grew up around here, so I thought it would be best.”  After signing with Fresno State, Cederquist learned that he was also drafted in the late rounds to the Seattle Mariners, a Major League Baseball team, but he couldn’t go because he had already signed with a college.

“It would have been hard to pass up playing pro ball if I had stayed healthy my senior year of high school,” Cederquist said.

His first year at Fresno State wasn’t the dream that Cederquist had imagined; he received limited playing time and only saw 18 at bats. In those 18 at bats, Cederquist had a triple, a homerun and 7 RBIs; boosting his batting average to .444 and his slugging percentage to .722.

At the end of the season, Cederquist decided to leave Fresno State in order to seek more playing time.

“It was a tough decision, but I left on good terms,” he said. “I have no regrets signing with Fresno State.”

Leaving Fresno State, Cederquist headed to Fresno City College to become a Ram. At FCC, he is the starting first baseman and currently leads the team with a batting average of .367, slugging percentage of .517, .443 on base percentage, 12 runs scored, 22 hits, and 7 doubles.  He is also ranked second in RBIs and is tied for the lead in triples. This year, Cederquist’s goal is to win the state championship.

In the past three years, Cederquist has attended several different colleges, including California State University Fresno and Fresno City College. However, after this semester, Cederquist is heading to Santa Clara University on a scholarship.

He will graduate with his Associates Degree in Business after this semester and plans to continue his baseball career at Santa Clara. “After I left Fresno State, I was lucky enough that Santa Clara had open positions and still wanted me,” he said. “They offered me another scholarship, and I agreed to go.”  At Santa Clara, Cederquist wants to perform at the top level and help the team win the Conference Championships by contributing in any way possible.

While Cederquist’s road has not been completely ideal, he continues to play baseball. His ultimate goal is to play in the Major League, whether it is after this season or after Santa Clara. He says, “I just want the chance to play for any pro team possible.”