Former Irvine Valley star men's tennis player Arthur Bellegy led the Westcliff University tennis team to its best season in school history.
Westcliff won a Golden State Athletic Conference title and reached the NAIA National Championships in Mobile, Ala. last week.
The Warriors were seeded ninth and won its opening match, 4-0, over No. 24 Southwestern College of Kansas.
Westcliff then defeated William Carey of Mississippi, 4-0, before ending its tournament with a 4-2 loss to Keiser of Mobile, Ala. in the quarterfinals of the event.
Bellegy won his first two singles matches and both of his doubles matches at the event.
Bellegy had one of the best years in IVC tennis history in 2022.
The freshman No. 1 singles and doubles player earned Orange Empire Conference player of the year honors after helping lead the Lasers to an OEC title and a trip to the So. Cal. Regional semifinals before falling to eventual state champion College of the Desert.
Bellegy followed up his conference top honors with even bigger accomplishments. He won both the California Community College Athletic Association singles and doubles championships.
He captured the singles title and later paired with IVC freshman Kiichi Ishida to take home the doubles crown on May 7 at Mt. San Antonio College.
Bellegy wrapped up the singles title in straight sets earlier in the day with two straight wins and came back after a break and won two two more in a row with Ishida.
Both wins for Bellegy came against College of the Desert freshman Marco Alvarez, who teamed up with Raymundo Chavez in the doubles.
In the singles championship, it was number one versus number two, with top South seed Bellegy coming out the winner with a 6-1, 6-2 victory.
Bellegy dominated from the beginning and became the third singles champion from Irvine Valley since 2016.
In the doubles final, Bellegy and Ishida won came out on top in straight sets, 6-4, 6-4.
Bellegy was selected as the Intercollegiate Tennis Association sophomore player of the year for community colleges in Region I last summer.
