Former California Lutheran University star goalkeeper Gabby Flores joined the Cal Poly women's soccer program as an assistant coach specializing in goalkeeping in the spring of 2023.

Flores, a member of the Cal Lutheran women’s soccer team from 2017-21, was a five-time Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Defensive Player of the Week for the Regals. In 2017 as a freshman, she helped the program reach the Sweet Sixteen in the Division III NCAA Tournament for the first time in school history.

After graduating from Cal Lutheran in 2021, the Santa Maria native and Mission College Prep grad began coaching for the Central Coast United Soccer Club in San Luis Obispo in the spring of 2022. She also served as an assistant varsity coach at San Luis Obispo High this past season.

Flores said she’s had a strong relationship with associate head coach Scott Williams for a number of years and her ties to the area and the Central Coast United helped foster this opportunity to join the Mustang coaching staff.

“I’m hoping to bring lively energy,” she said, “and I hope to share and relate to anybody on the team, even if it’s just one person to just help them in their soccer journey and push the program.” 

In 2018, Flores received All-SCIAC First Team honors, recording eight complete game shutouts for the Regals. That season, Flores entered postseason play ranked No. 1 in Division III in goals against average and save percentage. She allowed just four goals across 1,115 minutes between the posts and finished the year with 48 saves.

In her final season at Cal Lutheran in 2021, Flores was named All-SCIAC Second Team, posting seven shutouts, a 0.85 goals against average and a .815 save percentage across 16 starts.

Flores graduated from Mission Prep in San Luis Obispo in 2017. She was named Second Team All-League twice for the Royals and during her senior year earned Goalkeeper of the Year and First Team All-League honors. Flores also played for Central Coast United, when the club team was previously called the SLO Storm. 

Flores, who assisted Cal Poly on a limited basis last season, said when her playing career came to a close, she knew she wanted to find a way to stay involved with the sport — so she started coaching.

“Soccer has always been there for me,” she said. “I’m not one to settle and I wanted to share my experiences.”

In 2018, Flores survived a tragic mass shooting at the Borderline Bar and Grill in Thousand Oaks. That devastating event changed her perspective on life and pushed her to give back to soccer in her community.

“It made me realize I wanted to leave an impact someway somehow,” she said. “Now every time I show up here and every time I’ve shown up to coach kids I think about how lucky I am and how awesome it is to be able to share my experiences and lead the next generation of soccer players out of the Central Coast."

Flores is extremely grateful for this opportunity and is looking forward to helping the team reach new heights.

“I hope to challenge the program and I hope to challenge the goalkeepers most importantly,” she said. “I think they’ve had a great foundation of work, but I think there’s more to go and I think the limits have yet to be pushed.”

Flores earned a bachelor’s degree in communications with an emphasis in public relations from Cal Lutheran in 2021, and is currently finishing up her master’s degree in business from the school.