Jeremy Mikesell, Valley High School volleyball head coach, was named the 2025 Class 5A Coach of the Year by the Iowa Girls' Coaches Association. 

Mikesell led the Tigers to the semifinal round of the state tournament, beating Pleasant Valley in a five-set thriller in the quarterfinal round. Valley finished the season 28-13 overall, winning 14 of its last 17 matches. 

“It's very humbling to be selected by my peers to receive this honor,” Mikesell said. “There is just such a strong community of volleyball coaches in the state that we really feed off of each other to be better for the athletes we support.”

The Tigers got better and better as the 2025 season went on. Sitting at 14-10 on Sept. 18 after back-to-back conference losses, Valley responded by winning eight matches in a row. The Tigers won 11 of 13 matches to close the regular season, then beat Roosevelt and Cedar Falls to capture the regional championship. 

"To be one of the final four teams in the postseason was an expectation we had back in August. It just took a while for everyone else to believe it." — Jeremy Mikesell

“This last season had so many things click at the right time,” Mikesell said. “The team connected, the chemistry was great, and the team captains were relentless in wanting everyone to be better. Every practice, we walked out of the gym feeling like we got better. To be one of the final four teams in the postseason was an expectation we had back in August. It just took a while for everyone else to believe it."

At the state tournament, sixth-seeded Valley trailed third-seeded Pleasant Valley 2-1 after three sets in the quarterfinal match but rallied to win 13-25, 25-21, 23-25, 25-20, 15-13. Kaelyn Wieland led the effort with 26 assists and 10 kills. The senior went on to earn all-tournament and IGCA First Team All-State honors. 
 

“Coach Mikesell is the definition of a relentless leader,” Valley Activities Director Zac Sinram said. “Even when the season got tough, his focus remained on the growth of his players. This award recognizes the culture of excellence he’s built within our volleyball program. We couldn’t be prouder to have him leading our student-athletes.”

Mikesell has 463 wins in 16 years at Valley and 719 wins throughout his career. Under his direction, the Tigers have qualified for the state tournament in 8 of the last 10 seasons. He was also named IGCA Class 5A Coach of the Year in 2022 and American Volleyball Coaches Association Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2021. 

Mikesell earned milestone win No. 700 on Sept. 6, 2025, a 2-0 triumph over Dowling.