Izzi Bautista Joins Cal Poly Women's Soccer Staff as Assistant Coach
7/20/2025 2:00:00 PM | Women's Soccer
SAN LUIS OBISPO, Calif. — Izzi Bautista, who helped Division II Colorado Mesa reach unprecedented heights across a four-year stint, has been hired as an assistant coach with the Cal Poly women’s soccer program, first-year head coach Bernardo Silva recently announced.
I love the sport and being around it, and there’s never a moment where I’m not thinking or doing something related to the game. I can’t wait to share that passion with the team.Izzi Bautista, Cal Poly Women's Soccer Assistant Coach
Bautista comes to Cal Poly after spending the past four seasons (2021-24) as an assistant coach at Colorado Mesa, where she aided the Mavericks to a 56-18-10 overall record, a 37-10-1 mark in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference regular season play and a berth to the NCAA Tournament the last two seasons. Under Bautista, Colorado Mesa boasted 11 All-RMAC first team honorees, six second team picks and seven honorable mention selections.
“I’m extremely excited to add a coach as talented as Izzi to round out our incredible coaching staff,” Silva said. “Izzi brings a level of professionalism and passion to the game that we are looking to instill in our program and student-athletes as we build Cal Poly 2.0. From the moment we met, it was evident how aligned we are philosophically when it comes to how we see the game and how we approach coaching as a way to enhance the lives of our student-athletes not only on the pitch, but off of it. She was the perfect fit for this role, and I can’t wait to see how her presence continues to elevate our program.”
A native of Bristol, England, Bautista played a pivotal role in helping Colorado Mesa achieve one of its most successful seasons in program history in 2023. The Mavericks set a new single-season program record for wins with a 18-4-1 record and secured the program’s second-ever RMAC Tournament Championship and first since 1998 to punch their ticket to the NCAA Division II Tournament. In their first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2011, the Mavericks won multiple NCAA Tournament games for the first time in program history, advancing to the Third Round and the South Central Regional final.
This past season, Colorado Mesa posted a 14-2-4 overall record to finish with its third most wins in a season in program history, advancing to the NCAA Tournament for the second straight year and making it to the Second Round.
Izzi brings a level of professionalism and passion to the game that we are looking to instill in our program and student-athletes as we build Cal Poly 2.0.Bernardo Silva, Cal Poly Women's Soccer Head Coach
“I’m so incredibly grateful for this opportunity to join coach Silva’s staff,” Bautista said. “I love the sport and being around it, and there’s never a moment where I’m not thinking or doing something related to the game. I can’t wait to share that passion with the team.”
Bautista, who helped the Mavericks claim a share of the RMAC regular season conference title during her first season with the team in 2021, played at Arkansas State from 2012-13, making 31 appearances across the two seasons and helping the Red Wolves record seven shutouts during her freshman season, a school record at the time. She spent her last two seasons on the pitch at Division II Montana State University Billings from 2014-15, starting at holding midfielder in all 17 matches during her senior season and playing 1,429 total minutes. Before graduating from MSUB with her bachelor’s degree, Bautista spent the spring of 2016 as a volunteer assistant on the Yellowjackets’ women’s soccer staff.
Prior to her time at Colorado Mesa, Bautista got her first taste of the RMAC when she served as a graduate assistant and interim head coach at Division II Regis University in Denver, Colorado, between the 2018 and 2020 seasons while earning a dual-specialization master’s in athletic administration and crime studies.
Bautista will replace Paige Johnson, who left in June to take over as the head women’s soccer coach at nearby Cuesta College after serving as an assistant coach for the Mustangs for eight years across a pair of stints.
Silva said he included the team’s three captains in the interview process for the open position and it was evident right away how much Bautista fit in with the team’s culture. Silva said Bautista’s Division II coaching experience will bring a lot of value to the program.
“Coaching in Division II, you have to wear a multitude of hats and touch every aspect and piece of a program,” Silva said. “As a result, you develop a do-more-with-less mentality, and for me it’s important that all our coaches have that mindset in their DNA. We want our players to be a direct reflection of our leadership, so when they see Izzi going the extra mile and doing whatever it takes to win, our players will follow suit.”
When Bautista interviewed for the position, it wasn’t her first time interacting with the players and Cal Poly coaching staff. Her husband, Brandon Bautista, was hired as an assistant coach on the Cal Poly men’s soccer team during the winter and soon after his appointment she began communicating with Silva and the rest of the coaching staff. Once she arrived in San Luis Obispo from Colorado, Bautista attended one of the Mustangs’ trainings during the spring and saw the makings of something special. Silva felt an immediate connection with Bautista thanks to a shared enthusiasm for the game and he let her know that if an opportunity opened up to join the program, she would be at the top of his list.
“I wanted to be really intentional about how I returned to the game,” Bautista said about moving to San Luis Obispo. “I wanted to be part of something with a clear vision and direction, so when I got the chance to be around the program in the spring, I loved what big picture looked like and where the program was heading. At the time, I already knew if a position became available, I wanted to pursue it, so when I got that call, I was pretty happy.”
I’ve always tried to help players take a step back and see the purpose behind what they are doing each and every day, and how it will benefit them long term.Izzi Bautista, Cal Poly Women's Soccer Assistant Coach
Bautista’s coaching resume also includes serving as the head coach for Billings United and stints as the technical director for Folsom SC, South Pasadena AYSO and Wheat Ridge Avalanche SC. She spent time as an assistant for Colorado Select, formerly Colorado Olympic Development, for two seasons and served as the head coach for the Colorado Select Mountain Region. In 2024, Bautista was also an assistant coach for the Western Region Olympic Development Program.
Growing up, Bautista (formerly Howard) developed a deep love and passion for the sport. She attended Filton College in Bristol, England, where she earned the opportunity to play for Bristol City FC, formerly known as Bristol Academy WFC. She was a member of the Bristol club in 2011 that earned FA Club of the Year honors and helped Filton win back-to-back English Schools college championship titles (2011-12). It was during this time that Bautista started to show an interest in pursuing a coaching career, and she credits her physical education teachers growing up for helping foster a love for the game that she wanted to share with others. Bautista even coached a few boys youth soccer teams in England before moving to the U.S. to start her playing career at Arkansas State.
“The people around me were some of my biggest supporters,” Bautista said, “and I was fortunate enough to grow up in a professional environment through an academy as a youth player, and that’s had a huge impact on who I am today.”
Bautista said over the course of her coaching career she’s developed the ability to help student-athletes see the bigger picture. She plans on bringing that to Cal Poly and instilling a belief in the Mustangs that they can shine when the lights are the brightest and a Big West Championship is on the line.
“I plan on bringing honesty, clarity and intention to everything I do,” Bautista said. “I’ve always tried to help players take a step back and see the purpose behind what they are doing each and every day, and how it will benefit them long term … and I look forward to being on the field with them as much possible.”
