St. Johns River State College setter Jessica Horn (9) talks with coach Stephanie Champine during her team’s match with Gulf Coast State last Oct. 26. At left is Vikings teammate Lovina Teel. (MARK BLUMENTHAL / Palatka Daily News)

For a season that saw memorable firsts for the St. Johns River State College volleyball team, one more was added to the list on Monday.

Jessica Horn, a setter from Plainfield, Illinois, is the winner of the Roberta Stokes Award by the Florida College Systems Activities Association given annually to a player who exhibits top-tier athletic achievements and maintains a stellar grade-point average.

As part of the first Vikings team to ever win a Division II Region 8/state championship and be a part of the National Junior College Athletic Association Division II tournament in Iowa, Horn, a sophomore who came from Joliet Catholic Academy and will be continuing her education and volleyball career this fall at Palm Beach Atlantic University, was a first-team FCSAA member and the Most Valuable Player of the regional tournament when the Vikings defeated Lake-Sumter State at Indian River State College in November for the landmark first state championship. Horn was also named the setter of the year and was an NJCAA All-American first teamer.

In what turned out to be her only season with the Vikings, Horn set the team record and Division II Sun-Lakes Conference mark for assists (1,428) and service aces (90) in a season.

“I had never met her previously,” said Vikings co-head coach Stephanie Champine when asked about how she recruited Horn. “I just came across her on the recruiting pages and reached out to her. We had a great conversation, and she liked what I was building at SJR. And I really liked her goals, so we got her on campus and she seemed just like a great fit. I knew right away she was going to step in and do great things. She’s focused on her goals and is very disciplined on the court. She has a lot of leadership skills.”

Horn, who maintained a 4.0 grade-point average while playing for the Vikings, added 72 kills, 345 digs and a combined 52 blocks as well. It was all part of an historic 22-15 season.

“She always does the right things,” Champine continued. “She’s really focused on her goals and her future. She’s not someone that we have to make sure she’s doing her study hours. She sets an example for the other girls because they see how disciplined she is at studying. She helps her teammates out with tutoring some of them and gives them different study skills and what works for her. She does a great job with all that.”

“It was an honor to have her at SJR State, and it will be a pleasure to watch her success continue, not just on the volleyball court, but in life,” college president Joe Pickens added in a statement.