The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) announced its 2019 NAIA All-Americans on Friday, and William Woods University senior and former Irvine Valley star Javier Callejo and junior Aaron Westerlund were named to the teams.
Callejo was named to the Men's Singles for the second consecutive year, and Callejo and Westerlund were named to the Men's Doubles.
"Javi is the first player to every be named All-American from the ITA 2 years in a row which is a major accomplishment," stated Head Coach Justin Stuckey on the William Woods website. "Aaron came to William Woods as a very accomplished doubles player and one of the top doubles player in Juco tennis. It says a lot about him as a player that he instantly was able to be recognized as an All-American for his doubles play with Javi in his first year."
The criteria for All-American recognition are finishing in the top 20 of the final Oracle/ITA national rankings for singles and top 10 of the final Oracle/ITA national doubles rankings.
Callejo earned All-American status after ranking eighth in the final Oracle/ITA NAIA Men's Rankings. He finished the season with an 11-2 singles record in the No. 1 spot.
The Callejo and Westerlund duo ranked seventh in the final Oracle/ITA NAIA Men's Rankings. The duo went undefeated on the season, finishing with an 11-0 record.
In his All-American season as a junior at William Woods in 2018, Callejo finished the season with a record of 12-4 in singles action.
In doubles action, Callejo and Vleeming Ortiz went 12-4 in doubles as a team.
Callejo also received a special award from the Intercollegiate Tennis Association as a junior.
He was named the ITA Arthur Ashe Leadership & Sportsmanship Award winner for the central region.
Callejo helped William Woods win the AMC/Heart Tournament title, which qualified the squad for the NAIA Men's Tennis National Championships in 2018.
At Irvine Valley, Callejo helped lead the Lasers to back-to-back California Community College Athletic Association championships (2016 and 2017) and he won two state singles titles in a row, as well as one in doubles.
In 2017, Callejo finished off a Triple Crown with a 6-2, 6-4 CCCAA men's doubles championship with sophomore teammate Lucas Lesoeur at Libbey Park in Ojai.
A few hours earlier, Callejo won the State singles championship with a 6-3, 6-4 triumph.
Callejo and his teammates opened the 117th Ojai Tournament with a 5-1 win in the State Dual Team final over American River, which was the top seed from Northern California.
Callejo, the No. 9 seed, won his second straight state singles title by sweeping No. 6 Vincent Reynaud of Cypress in an All-Orange Empire Conference final. He became the first repeat state champion since Dan Omaboe of Marymount in 1994-95 and only the third back-to-back winner all time.
And Callejo became the first Triple Crown winner since Adriano Biasella of Desert in 2002 and the 10th Triple Crown winner since the State Championships began in 1960.
The Intercollegiate Tennis Association (ITA) is committed to serving college tennis and returning the leaders of tomorrow. As the governing body of college tennis, the ITA oversees men's and women's varsity tennis at NCAA Divisions I, II and III, NAIA and Junior/Community College divisions. The ITA administers a comprehensive awards and rankings program for men's and women's varsity players, coaches and teams in all divisions, providing recognition for their accomplishments on and off the court. For more information on the ITA, visit the ITA website at www.itatennis.com , like the ITA on Facebook or follow @ITA_Tennis on Twitter and Instagram.www.itatennis.com.