GAINESVILLE, Fla. - No. 15 Santa Fe Volleyball, the Mid-Florida Conference Champions, have hauled in four First Team All-Conference honors and two special awards.

The Mid-Florida Conference votes were tallied and announced on Monday afternoon, and the complete list of honorees have now been released on the FCSAA site at the link provided at the conclusion of this release.

The conference championship was the fourth in the history of the Santa Fe volleyball program, which started in 2014 under the direction of Head Coach Nick Cheronis.

The Saints won the Mid-Florida Conference Championship in the inaugural 2014 campaign, the Panhandle Conference crown in 2018 and 2019, and now the Mid-Florida Conference title once again this season.

The title helped SF bring in significant Mid-Florida Conference recognition, which included: Nick Cheronis (Coach of the Year), Madison Sheffield (Player of the Year), Kariana Ayala (First Team All-Conference), (Katelyn Crofts (First Team All-Conference), and Maria Hernandez (First Team All-Conference).

The Saints swept the special awards, and the four First Team honorees tied conference runner-up Daytona State for the most out of the nine members on the First Team. 

Nick Cheronis, Mid-Florida Conference Coach of the Year

In his seventh season at the helm of the Saints' program, Cheronis guided SF to a 15-2 overall record and 6-0 mark in the Mid-Florida Conference.

In addition to this season's honor, Cheronis was the Panhandle Conference Coach of the Year in both 2018 and 2019, and the Co-Coach of the Year in the Mid-Florida Conference during the inaugural 2014 season.

Santa Fe rattled off seven consecutive victories on two separate occasions, including the final seven games of the regular season.

The Saints have swept their opponents on 12 occasions, including the last seven outings leading up to postseason play.

Under Cheronis, Santa Fe ranks No. 2 in the NJCAA Division I in digs/set (21.59), No. 12 in hitting percentage (.248), No. 13 in blocks/set (2.43), and No. 19 in kills/set (12.00), among others. 

"Congratulations to Maria, Madi, Kari and Katelyn for being named to the Mid-Florida All-Conference First Team," said Cheronis. "You won't find any one more committed to excellence on and off the court than those four. Awards are always nice to receive and they do say certain things about the character of those players, but people need to understand, if their teammates don't come everyday and put themselves out there to get better, then we don't succeed as a team and there aren't any awards."

"I'm not a big 'awards' coach, and I am pretty sure each of those players would exchange their award in a heartbeat for a Region 8 Championship. That's what makes them special."

Madison Sheffield, Mid-Florida Conference Player of the Year

The sophomore outside hitter from Jacksonville, Fla. and Bartram Trail High School garnered Mid-Florida Conference Player of the Year recognition.

Sheffield was a Second Team All-Panhandle Conference honoree in 2019, and now adds the First Team Mid-Florida Conference and Player of the Year nod to her list of accomplishments.  

Sheffield has found the floor for double-digit kills in nine of the 17 matches so far for the Saints, and averages a team-high 3.64 kills/set to rank No. 4 in the FCSAA and No. 20 in the NJCAA Division I.

She has compiled five double-doubles on the year with kills and digs, and tied her career-high in kills for a match with 20 on two occasions, at Polk State College on Jan. 23 and at Pasco-Hernando State College on Jan. 29.

Sheffield was additionally chosen as the Region 8 Player of the Week on Jan. 26., and contributes all over the court for the Saints. No. 11 has recorded double-digit digs for SF in nine matches, and is undoubtedly a team leader that has played a key role in the Saints' success.

Kariana Ayala, Mid-Florida Conference First Team

The sophomore from Vega Baja, Puerto Rico and graduate of The Rock School has been a standout defensive specialist for the Saints this season, playing primarily as the libero.

Ayala was selected as the Region 8 Defensive Player of the Week on March 2, then the NJCAA Division I Defensive Player of the Week on March 3. 

She ranks No. 4 in the FCSAA in total digs (314) and No. 3 in digs/set (5.92), leading SF in both categories. Her 5.92 digs/set ranks No. 9 in all of the NJCAA Division I.   

Ayala has been a model of consistency, recording ten or more digs in every match this season. 

Her season-high dig total was 30 on Feb. 27 in a sweep of Gulf Coast State College, and she has notched 25 or more digs in three matches.  

Katelyn Crofts, Mid-Florida Conference First Team

Crofts, a freshman middle blocker from Gainesville, Fla. and graduate of The Rock School, has made the most of her initial collegiate campaign.

As a force at the net for the Saints, Crofts ranks No. 3 in the FCSAA in hitting percentage (.355) and No. 12 in the NJCAA Division I. Her 114 kills for the Saints ranks second on the team, and she averages 2.04 kills/set.

She set a new program-record for hitting percentage in a match against Florida State College at Jacksonville on Feb. 24, finding the floor for a season-high 13 kills in her 18 swings (.722). 

Her impact is perhaps most felt in the blocking category. With 24 solo blocks so far on the season, Crofts ranks No. 11 in the NJCAA Division I, and she is No. 27 in total blocks with 66. 

She has recorded a block in every match so far this season, including a season-high seven at Polk State College on Jan. 23 and at Indian River State College on Feb. 5 

Maria Hernandez, Mid-Florida Conference First Team

Hernandez, a sophomore setter from Bayamon, Puerto Rico and The Rock School, is last but certainly not least on the list of the four Saints to receive All-Conference honors.

It is the second First Team All-Conference selection for Hernandez in her career, after being named to the First Team All-Panhandle Conference in 2019. 

The FCSAA Setter of the Week distinction was handed out to Hernandez on two occasions this season, Feb. 9 and March 9. 

Hernandez comes in at No. 3 in the FCSAA in total assists (572) and assists/set (10.21). Her assists/set average ranks No. 10 in the NJCAA Division I.

Her contributions are also significant defensively. She has recorded 13 double-doubles on the season in assists and digs, and ranks second on the team in digs and No. 8 in the FCSAA with 247. She has also totaled 17 blocks. 

Hernandez served up a career-high 51 assists on Jan. 29 in a 3-2 win at Pasco-Hernando State College, and also set career-highs this season for kills in a match (7, vs. Pensacola State College on March 6) and digs (27, at Polk State College on Jan. 23 and at Indian River State College on Feb. 5). 

In the regular-season finale at Daytona State, Hernandez became the program's career-leader in all-time assists, surpassing the previous benchmark of 1224 from Farah Rajaee. (2014).

The complete list of Mid-Florida Conference award winners are included at the link below.

Santa Fe is the No. 4 seed for the upcoming Region 8 State Tournament, which will be hosted by Florida State College at Jacksonville from March 25 - March 28. The Saints begin postseason play with a third matchup this season with the No. 5 seed, Daytona State College, on Thursday, March 25 at 1:00 p.m. 

2021 Volleyball Awards - NJCAA Region 8