Coaching Staff

 Head Coach Alex Crozier

Crozier Accolades
Career Record of 192-96-33 (Entering 2008)

Four-time Big West Conference Coach of the Year
(1996, 1997, 2002, 2003)
1993 NCAA Division II National Coach of the Year
Six Big West Championships
(1996, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004)

5 Straight Winning Seasons (2002-2007)

9 Straight Winning Seasons (1992-00)

1993 CCAA Coach of the Year

Head Coach Alex Crozier returns for his 17th year at the helm of the Cal Poly women’s soccer program. He is the first and only coach since inception of intercollegiate play for the program in 1992.

The 2007 Mustang squad finished 8-9-3 overall and third in the Big West with a 5-2-1 conference mark. The Mustangs advanced to the championship game of the Big West Tournament before falling in penalty kicks to Cal State Fullerton. Carrie Andrews was named to the All-Big West first team for the second straight year while seniors Sharon Day and Ali Trammel were named to the Big West’s second team.

Crozier is the leader of all active Cal Poly coaches in winning percentage. His teams have posted a 192-96-33 record in his previous 16 seasons, including a trip to the NCAA Division II finals in 1993.

The 1999 campaign was a landmark season for Crozier and his Mustangs. A 12-8 regular season along with a Big West title and a win in the NCAA Division I Tournament made for a memorable season. The team defeated Fresno State in the first round, before falling to Stanford in round two.

The 2000 season marked a second consecutive Big West title and another trip to the NCAA Tournament. Crozier’s team finished 11-7-1, led by a stellar defense and 10 goals from Schlegel.

Crozier has earned Big West Conference Coach of the Year four times, earning the honor in Cal Poly’s first season as a member of the Big West in 1996 and sharing the award in 1997 with Pacific’s Keith Coleman. Crozier also earned the award in 2002 and 2003.

Crozier has helped build the Mustangs into a power, both in the Big West and on the national stage. In 1997, Cal Poly claimed the Big West regular season championship and cracked the National Soccer Coaches Association of America/Umbro Top 25 national ranking. The Mustangs also appeared in the top five in the West Region in 1997, finally settling for a No. 8 regional ranking, ahead of such teams as Stanford and California.

In Cal Poly’s first season as a member of the Big West, the Mustangs made an immediate impact, claiming the league’s tournament championship in 1996.

Prior to joining the Big West Conference, the Mustangs played as an independent for two years after jumping to the NCAA Division I level from Division II in 1994. Under Crozier, Cal Poly racked up a combined 29-6-3 record in those two seasons as an independent, barely missing the NCAA Tournament both years. In 1994 the Mustangs were 14-3-2, and the next year, Cal Poly was 15-3-1.

Overall, in Cal Poly’s first four seasons as a Division I program, Crozier’s squad had a glossy 56-21-4 record. In the Mustangs’ first two seasons of existence, they made their mark on the NCAA Division II stage. In the inaugural season, Cal Poly was 10-6-2. Of those six losses, four were to Division I teams, and the Mustangs’ six matches against Division I opponents were the most of any Division II squad in the United States. The Mustangs proved they could play with anyone, regardless of the level of competition, when they tied national powerhouse Santa Clara.

In 1993, Cal Poly’s final season at Division II, Crozier led the Mustangs to the national championship match and earned national Coach of the Year honors.

Prior to beginning the Cal Poly program, Crozier, a 1984 Cal Poly graduate with a civil engineering degree, was an assistant at Santa Clara for one season. From 1989-91, he coached the West Valley F.C. Premier U-19 girls to the State Cup Championship and a third-place national finish. He coached the Cal Poly women’s soccer team from 1979-83 when it was a club sport competing in the California Collegiate Women’s Soccer Conference.

Crozier’s playing career included four years at Cal Poly and three seasons at Bullard High in Fresno. Bullard won CIF-Central Section titles all three seasons and Crozier was the team captain and earned team MVP and all-league honors in 1979. At Cal Poly, Crozier was team captain in 1982 and 1983 under Wolfgang Gartner, earned all-conference honors in 1982 and 1883 and was All-Far West Region in 1982.

Crozier’s coaching impact is felt by other programs around the nation.

Dan Tobias, now head coach at Arizona, served as an assistant to Crozier. Wendy Jones, an assistant at Boise State, is a former player and coach under Crozier and Tobias.

Crozier resides in San Luis Obispo with his wife, Judy King, and the couple’s two sons, Danny,  and Robert, and one daughter, Angela

Assistant Coach Orlando Cervantes, First Season

A new addition for Cal Poly in 2008 is assistant coach Orlando Cervantes. Cervantes joins the Mustangs with eight years of coaching experience at the collegiate level, including a recent stint as head coach at Embry Riddle Aeronautical University in Prescott, Ariz. Prior to coaching the Eagles, Cervantes headed Holy Names University in Oakland, Calif. from 2004-2006 and spent four years from 1998-2001 as an assistant at San Jose State.

In his career, Cervantes has helped develop six Major League Soccer players, two United States full National Team players and two Women’s United Soccer Association Team players as well as numerous A-League players. Cervantes also spent a season (1999) as the head coach and assistant general manager of the California Jaguars, a professional Division III United Soccer league franchise.

While with Embry Riddle, Cervantes also served as the sports information director for the Eagles.

Cervantes earned a bachelor’s degree in kinesiology from San Jose State, graduating in 1999. He has earned a United States Soccer Federation “A” license as well as diplomas from the United States Youth Soccer Association, National Soccer Coaches Association and the KNVB Dutch Regional. Cervantes is currently pursuing a master’s degree in sports management from California University of Pennsylvania.

Assistant Coach Bob Galarneau, seventh season

Bob Galarneau is in his seventh season as an assistant coach for Alex Crozier at Cal Poly. He served as goalkeeper coach from 2000-2004, took a year off and rejoined the Mustangs in 2006.

Galarneau has an NSCAA National Soccer Coaching License (2000), NSCAA CA State Goalkeeping Coaching License (2004), NSCAA Advanced Regional Youth Diploma (2006) and a USSF National “C” Soccer Coaching License (2006).

As a player, Galarneau played four years for Chicopee High School and was named an NSCAA All-American. He then played for four years at Springfield College where he was an NEISL All-Region selection. Galarneau finished off his playing days with a seven year stint for Lusitano Portuguese America FC from 1980-86. He earned a B.S. in Health, Physical Education and Recreation with a minor in Athletic Training and Coaching Methods while at Springfield College.

Galaraneau is currently the Director of Coaching for the San Luis Obispo Soccer Club and the head coach for SLOSC Fire Boys Under 16 and Storm Girls Under-18. He also works as a personal chef and proprietor for The Wayfaring Chef. In 1992, Galarneau earned a Professional Culinary Diploma for classic French cuisine from the Connecticut Culinary Institute in Hartford, Conn.

Volunteer Assistant Coach Missy O'Brien, First Season

O’Brien joins Cal Poly as a former semi-professional player for the Redondo Beach Flyers, where she was coached by then-UCLA head women’s soccer coach Afshin Ghotbi. O’Brien was a standout prep player at Arcadia High School, earning a spot on the All-CIF 3A Second Team as well as all-league and defensive MVP honors in 1989. O’Brien was also selected to the Southern California soccer team in 1989 and participated in the Junior Olympics program. In 1988, O’Brien was the MVP at the Los Angeles Games Women’s Soccer Tournament. Working out of Arcadia, O’Brien spent time as a private instructor in 1988 and 1989 and coached a private youth club team, the Santa Anita Fillies, from 1982-88.

An avid runner, O’Brien completed the Los Angeles Marathon as well as the Camp Roberts Half Marathon in 2008. She was a volunteer for the Madre de Dios, a children’s orphanage in Cochabumba, Bolivia in 1991.