Coach of the Year: Mike Voelkel

Good coaches get the most out of their players and no coach at Palisades High did that better in 2019 than baseball skipper Mike Voelkel, who pressed all the right buttons in piloting the Dolphins to Dodger Stadium.

Palisades made the finals of the City Section’s highest division for only the third time in team history and the first time since 1989, digging out of a 5-0 hole in the fourth inning before falling 9-5 to reigning Open champion Birmingham. Voelkel navigated the Dolphins through a tough schedule that included games against all but one of the 11 other Open Division schools.   

Never one to shy away from competition, Voelkel takes more pride in running a clean program and playing by the rules than he does in winning games—although his team won 26 of its 33 games in the spring, including an 11-game winning streak from March 1 to April 6—and finished a perfect 12-0 in Western League play. In the playoffs Palisades blanked Granada Hills 2-0 and El Camino Real 1-0 to earn a spot in the championship game.