Cal Poly Women’s Soccer opened the 2025 season with nine non-conference matches and escaped the slate unbeaten, becoming the first team in program history to do so. The Mustangs went 2-0-7 in that span, breaking the program’s record of most ties achieved in a single season.
The unbeaten stretch was also the team’s longest overall since opening the 2005 season with a 6-0-3 record. Last season, they had one win in their first nine games.
READ MORE: Cal Poly ties Cal State Bakersfield on Oct 2
Newly appointed head coach Bernardo Silva says G.R.I.T. got the team to one of the program’s best starts. The acronym has a double meaning: it can be interpreted through the literal definition of the word “grit” or each letter of the abbreviation can be used to reflect his core principles.
“G” stands for grind. The “R” is for respect. “I” initializes integrity. And the “T” represents a team-first mentality.
Silva was quick to embed the G.R.I.T. philosophy into the team’s culture, and it is only one of a slew of slogans he implemented into the culture. The philosophy and mindset shift have yielded results that have been nothing short of historic.
With Silva’s mottos in mind, the Mustangs have inserted themselves as a Big West contender, having landed themselves in a three-way tie for fourth place in the conference. They were one of only 18 teams across the nation to remain undefeated before falling to UC Santa Barbara in the conference-play opener on Sept. 18.
As of Oct. 7, their record is 4-1-8.
Cal Poly 2.0
Silva originally served as Cal Poly’s assistant coach from 2013–16 and left for other coaching opportunities at UC Santa Barbara, Sacramento State and Cal State Bakersfield.
Despite leaving Cal Poly, Silva continued to identify with the Mustangs and held a persistent belief that he would return to the university.
“It’s always been this dream job for me, so I felt like I was coming home,” Silva said. “I think this is one of the best jobs in the West Coast. I love Cal Poly. I love what Cal Poly is all about.”
With Silva as only the second man at the helm in program history, a new age has been ushered in for the Mustangs.
With the new era officially being dubbed “Cal Poly 2.0,” by Silva, the Mustangs aim to honor the foundation laid out by former head coach Alex Crozier while also distinguishing themselves from the prior era.
Cal Poly 2.0 is characterized by a hard-working and gritty team identity, all of which can be captured in another one of Silva’s many mottos.
“The standard is the standard,” Silva often says to the players.
The phrase was curated by Silva and the team’s three captains in an offseason meeting, serving as a consistent reminder of the all-in mindset the team has adopted as their own. The expression is utilized to keep the players accountable, to ensure that anything less than maximum effort is not tolerated.
“I think it speaks well to our team,” senior forward and captain Jessie Halladay said. “You play as best as you can for the team and there’s no excuses because we’re all giving 100%. We do that for each other, regardless of the circumstances.”
The motto and its significance to Silva is reflected in his coaching style as well. Upon being hired, he immediately put effort into cultivating a team culture that is defined by selflessness and hard work.
The Mustangs continuously stress the importance of making and maintaining close, personal relationships with one another. Forming close bonds with other teammates and staff is a staple of Silva’s and the Cal Poly program’s culture as a whole, and the players have embraced the interpersonal mindset.
“We have this saying that goes ‘it’s all about the person next to us’ and I think that’s super prevalent in our culture,” senior midfielder and captain Sophia Minnite said. “It’s so important, from both a soccer and life standpoint, to build those friendships and relationships that will last a long time.”
In the offseason, Silva established an emphasis on the significance of both individual and team fitness overall. Silva added several drills targeting the team’s endurance.
The fast-paced, intense practices have seemingly paid off, allowing the Mustangs to stay alive late in the game and maintain control over how the game is played rather than being forced to adapt to how the game develops.
This is further demonstrated in the timing of the team’s offensive successes. Of the 22 goals Cal Poly has netted across the season thus far, nine of them have come in the second half of the match.
“We’re definitely a lot more fit and able to press our opponents the way we want to and able to maintain possession of the ball within the game as much as possible,” senior defender and captain Camryn Penn said. “Being able to do all that and not get as tired as we used to helps us make sure that we can dominate our games as much as possible.”
Grittiness to success, a pipeline
Each part of Silva’s coaching philosophy boils down to one mindset: grit brings success. It is a lesson he picked up when coaching the Bakersfield women’s soccer program.
“Gritty people tend to be more successful sustainably than just talented people,” Silva said. “Bakersfield is gritty, a city that’s an underdog. I leaned into that underdog identity and brought a piece of it to Cal Poly.”
The gritty, aggressive playing style has allowed the Mustangs’ offense to thrive as they have crafted one of the most impressive attacks in the Big West conference.
As of Oct. 7, Cal Poly has tacked on 22 goals in their 13 total games played, the most scored in the conference.
This is a direct contrast to the season prior in which the Mustangs netted only 15 goals in their first 13 games, five of which had come from a single game — a win against Nevada.
Cal Poly’s 2025 squad have scored at least one goal in 11 of their first 13 matches played, whereas the 2024 Mustangs scored at least once in only seven of their first 13 games.
Halladay is the highlight of the high-octane offense, accounting for seven of the 22 goals. She leads the Big West in goals scored by an individual player.
Junior Annika Smith follows close behind with five goals, tied for second in the conference.
Overall offensive opportunities are not lacking as well; the Mustangs hold an eight-shot lead over rival UCSB for the most shots taken in the conference. Halladay has also fired the most shots in the conference among individual players.
The Mustangs’ gritty playstyle requires an elevated level of communication and positive team chemistry in order to work effectively in-match.
For that reason, in addition to fashioning an intense, competitive atmosphere to fuel Cal Poly’s approach, Silva also prioritized creating a positive, relationship-oriented team culture that the players have deemed “a sisterhood.”
“We’re a pretty strong sisterhood because we care about each other so much on and off the field. We just enjoy being around each other and I think that’s what makes us want to work for each other.”
Sophia Minnite, senior midfielder and captain
With an entirely new mindset and way of play having been fully established in the non-conference slate, the Mustangs set their sights on their first Big West matches under the Cal Poly 2.0 program.
Cal Poly is preparing for the Big West by practicing consistency and internal focus, using it as their guiding light to find success within the season.
“We just prepare for every game like it’s a battle, so it’s just bridging consistency,” Silva said. “The standard is all about not allowing external factors to control it and I think that’s the story of our season so far. It’s what the story of our season will be.”
This story originally appeared in the October print edition of Mustang News. Check out more from the edition at news stands around campus and San Luis Obispo.
For more stories from the October print edition check out the featured print section on our website or the full issue.