Sophomore women's indoor and beach volleyball player Kendall Fraser and sophomore men's tennis player Devon Kashishian are Irvine Valley's female and male winners of the Orange Empire Conference Character Champion Award for the 2022-23 school year.
Both student athletes worked hard in the classroom and were leaders on and off the courts at IVC.
Fraser has starred on both the sand and the hard court for the Lasers the last two years.
She has helped the Lasers to multiple championships, including the CCCAA state beach title in the spring of 2022.
Fraser was then a big part of Irvine Valley's Orange Empire Conference indoor title in the fall of 2022.
With that indoor championship for IVC last fall, Fraser was named first team all-Orange Empire Conference.
Irvine Valley finished with a record of 20-5 overall and 15-1 in conference.
Fraser averaged 1.34 kills per set and had a hitting percentage of .374. She also averaged 0.96 blocks per set for the Lasers.
This spring with the beach team, Fraser helped Irvine Valley win conference's Eastern Division.
She has also been a scholar athlete each and every semester at Irvine Valley.
Fraser is the latest in a long line of campus leaders from IVC Volleyball.
She has been a captain, honor student and a community servant.
She has epitomized the concept of student-athlete. Fraser has worked as a youth girls volleyball coach for two years at Balboa Bay Volleyball club (13s and 15s girls teams). Along with club duties, she regularly helps with elementary and middle school age youth developmental volleyball clinics/camps.
"Kendall was a great team player and captain during her two years at IVC," former Irvine Valley coach Ryan Windisch said. "Her dedication to always getting better each and every day was amazing.
"She is one of the top blockers in IVC history. Kendall embraced her role on the team both of her years and always found a way to make the team better. She was a core reason why we were able to regain the conference title this past fall. It was a pleasure working with her these past two seasons."
Entering the Spring 2023 term:
3.82 GPA in 58 units - 3x Dean's List
Associate of Science for Transfer, Biology (Spring 2023)
Accepted at CPSLO, will major in Animal Science
Post grad intention of Veterinarian School w/ concentration in Animal Nutrition and Research
4x starter (2 years indoor, 2 years beach)
Indoor Team Captain - 2022
3x OEC Champion (indoor - 2021 and 2022; beach - 2022)
CCCAA State Champion, Beach - 2022
3x IVC Scholar-Athlete; IVC Athlete of the Week
1st Team All-OEC indoor - 2022
Kashishian helped Irvine Valley to a co-championship in the Orange Empire Conference this spring.
The sophomore played in the No. 1 doubles position and at second singles all year.
The Lasers ended with a record of 8-2 overall and 7-1 in conference.
Kashishian had a record of 5-3 in singles and 6-3 in doubles during the regular season.
He qualified through the OEC finals event in both singles and doubles for the California Community College Athletic Association state tournament.
At the state event, he reached the semifinals with sophomore teammate Kiichi Ishida.
"I am truly honored and excited to represent Irvine Valley College athletics," Kashishian said. "You have allowed me to live out a dream that I never thought was possible for me again."
Kashishian formerly played Division I tennis at Eastern Washington University from 2016-2018.
Kashishian admits that he struggled at the school with addiction before turning his life around.
"Being let go of that team has come to be one of the more important days in my life," he said. "I was let go for the opposite reason of the award that I have been nominated for. Which is why this means so much to me, I have tears of joy as I am proud of the man that this school and those around me have allowed me to become."
Kashishian was voted to be a team captain this past year at IVC because of his work ethic and leadership.
"No one worked harder or brought more energy and effort to the court and to our team," IVC coach Ross Duncan said. "The guys respect him immensely, as he is a man of his word and leads by example.
"He is not afraid to share his past and who he was, as well as his work toward the man he wants to become. He is a shining example of what leadership, personal growth and humility looks like.
"It has been an absolute honor and a privilege to share this journey with him and I know it will continue and be a lifelong bond that we will share. The sport of tennis, our team, and IVC have been the perfect vehicle for his character to grow and develop."
On-track for Associate of Science for Transfer, Business Administration (Spring 2023)
Committed to NAIA #10-ranked Westcliff to transfer and compete
Team Captain
All-OEC singles and doubles
OEC Team Champions
State Qualifier in singles and doubles (doubles semifinalist)
The full 2022-23 IVC Annual Awards Program can be seen here
