20th Year (in 2024)

UC Davis ’97

Record at Stan State (through 2022 season): 202-110-42 (19 seasons)

Career College Coaching Record: Same

HONORS & AWARDS

- 2013 NSCAA West Region Coach of the Year

- 2013 CCAA Coach of the Year

- Stanislaus State Women's Soccer All-Time Winningest Coach

Gabriel Bolton, the most successful coach in Stanislaus State women’s soccer history, is in his 20th year at the helm of the program during the 2024-25 academic year.

Bolton has guided the Warriors to ten postseason appearances, including four NCAA Tournaments and ten California Collegiate Athletic Association championship tournaments. He led the program to an unprecedented seven consecutive post-season appearances from 2010-16, including two CCAA Tournament titles and the 2014 NCAA West Region Championship.

The 2013 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) West Region Coach of the Year and 2013 CCAA Coach of the Year has been the head coach — during two stints — at Stanislaus State since 2001. Bolton has coached Warrior student-athletes to 72 total all-CCAA awards, including 20 first team honors..  In 2022, Alexis Brewah was named the CCAA Newcomer of the Year and Sabrina Cabrera was the CCAA Midfielder of th eYear.  Both were First Team All-CCAA honorees and All-Region Team selections-just the most recent in a long line of major award winners under Bolton. He won his 100th match as head coach of the Warriors on Nov. 3, 2013. He coached his 300th match overall as Stanislaus State's head coach in the 2021 season opener at Biola on Sept. 2. He is also one of only three active coaches in the conference to win multiple CCAA women’s soccer titles.

Bolton's 2021 squad posted the program's 14th consecutive winning season and qualified for its fourth CCAA Tournament in six tries. He guided the 2019 version of Warriors women's soccer to both the CCAA Championship and NCAA tournaments. The team finished the season with a 15-6-0 record - the fourth time under Bolton's tenure the team had tallied at least 15 wins in a year, and the 12th time it had collected double-digit victories. Stanislaus State earned six all-CCAA awards that season, including two first teamers in Sadie Ortiz and Ilena Rivera.

The 2016 Warriors made it to the CCAA Championship Tournament semifinals on their home field in Turlock. In 2015, Bolton led the Warriors to the CCAA Championship match and an overall record of 12-6-3. The 2014 team captured the program’s first NCAA West Region Championship by blanking Cal Poly Pomona, 2-0, in Golden, Colo. Stanislaus State advanced to the NCAA Tournament Quarterfinals, eventually falling to Colorado School of Mines in penalty kicks. The 2014 squad was the first women’s soccer team in history to reach a No. 1 national ranking.  Stanislaus State finished the season ranked No. 9 nationally. 

With a 2-0 victory over Sonoma State the Warriors won the 2013 CCAA Championship and became the first undefeated team in CCAA history to win a conference championship. The Warriors were 18-0-2 before falling in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.  In addition to breaking nearly every record in program history the 2013 squad also reached a program-high (at the time) No. 5 national ranking by the NSCAA and were ranked as high as No. 2 in the nation by the Bennett Ranking Services. 

In 2011, the Warriors demolished Chico State 4-0 in the CCAA championship match before nearly 1,500 fans and a live television audience. The Warriors finished 11-4-6 and ranked No. 24 in the nation. Under Bolton’s guidance the Warriors also appeared in the postseason in 2010 and 2012. 

Bolton is responsible for recruiting and developing the 2013 NSCAA Division II Player of The Year and four-time All American Karenee Demery. During his coaching tenure with the Warriors he has coached three All Americans, 27 All West Region (CoSIDA, NSCAA) players, and 33 All CCAA award winners. 

The Warriors, who are know for their exciting brand of attacking soccer, led all NCAA Division II schools in average attendance from 2009-14, and in 2016. 

The soccer pitch is not the only place the Warriors have been successful. Upon his arrival to the Turlock campus, Bolton spearheaded an academic initiative for the women’s soccer team known as Operation Graduation. The results have been exceptional. The Warriors have carried a Grade Points Average of over 3.1 during his tenure and the program has been recognized by the NSCAA/United Soccer Coaches on seven occasions for their academic achievement. 

In 2012, the Warriors reached a major milestone when two student-athletes (Demery, Bernie Bettencourt) were named Academic All-American. Warrior student-athletes have earned more than 150 CCAA All-Academic team awards under Bolton.

Bolton is in his second stint coaching the Warriors. He coached the team in 2001 before returning in 2006. In 2001, he turned around one of the worst programs in NCAA Division II by leading the Warriors to an 11-8-1 record. In the three years before his arrival, the program tallied just a 7-48-1 record. The Warriors were ranked the fourth-most improved women’s soccer program in the nation by the NCAA at the conclusion of the year.

After the 2001 season, Bolton left to become the top assistant and recruiting coordinator at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City. During his three seasons at Utah, the Utes made three NCAA Division I tournament appearances, won the Mountain West Conference Championship tournament in 2003 and 2004 and posted an overall record of 42-12-8. The program was also ranked in the top 25 nationally all three seasons and in both 2003 and 2004, cracked the nation’s top 15 rankings.

As recruiting coordinator with the Utes, Bolton recruited three nationally-ranked recruiting classes. In 2002 and 2004, his classes were ranked No. 37 in the country and in 2003 his class was ranked No. 17—the highest-ranked recruiting class in Utah and Mountain West Conference history. During his three years at Utah, Bolton coached 14 all-conference players, 38 academic all-conference players, six NSCAA All-West Region players, five freshmen All-Americans, and two Verizon Academic All-Americans. Utah also received the NSCAA Team Academic Award all three years.

Bolton currently holds a Premier Diploma from the NSCAA (now United Soccer Coaches). He graduated from UC Davis with a degree in political science and sociology.  He also earned his law degree from the University of Pacific, McGeorge School of Law.

Bolton also has extensive playing experience. He was practically born with a soccer ball at his feet with his first kick of the ball happening while living in Peru as a child.  He subsequently continued his youth playing days in Southern California as well as in Norway and Italy.  Collegiately Bolton actually played golf at UC Davis.  After his collegiate golf days were over he went on to play soccer in the Central California Soccer League (CCSL) for the now defunct Woodland Tena.  Based out of Sacramento the CCSL was the premier amateur/semi-professional soccer league in Northern California in the mid 1990s and was the home to teams like Academica SC based out of Turlock. 

He and his wife Kathy Koumjian Bolton have three children: Sophia and twins Brynne and Ben.

Head Coach, Stanislaus State

2001, 2006 - Present

Year

Overall (Pct.)

CCAA (Place)

2001

11-8-1 (.575)

7-6-1 (2nd, Central)

2006

7-11-2 (.400)

4-10-2 (4th, North)

2007

9-9-2 (.500)

7-5-2 (2nd, North)

2008

8-7-4 (.526)

4-7-3 (4th, North)

2009

10-9-1 (.525)

6-9-1 (4th, North)

2010

12-6-1 (.658)

10-5-1 (2nd, North)

2011

11-4-6 (.667)

8-4-4 (2nd, North)

2012

15-4-0 (.789)

11-3-0 (2nd, North)

2013

18-1-2 (.905)

14-0-2 (1st, North)

2014

16-4-2 (.773)

6-4-1 (7th)

2015

12-6-3 (.643)

5-4-3 (6th)

2016

13-7-0 (.650)

6-6-0 (5th)

2017

11-5-2 (.667)

6-5-1 (7th)

2018

8-7-3 (.528)

4-6-2 (8th)

2019

15-6-0 (.714)

8-4-0 (4th)

2020 **

N/A

N/A

2021

8-6-4 (.556)

5-3-3 (6th)

2022

10-4-4 (.667)

7-2-2 (tied 1st)

Totals

194-104-35 (.635)

118-83-28 (.576)

** 2020 season canceled due to COVID-19 pandemic.