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Emiria Salzmann Dunn
Emiria Salzmann heads into her 13th year and 12th season as the Sonoma State women's soccer head coach in 2023. In eleven complete seasons at the helm, Salzmann has compiled a record of 145-51-24, including a 95-26-15 record in CCAA play, along with ten consecutive CCAA tournament appearances and nine NCAA tournament appearances dating back to 2012.
Emiria Salzmann ActionIn 2022, Sonoma State would make history and secure their third straight CCAA regular season title dating back to 2019. It would go down as the 5th CCAA league title in program history and Salzmann would earn her third CCAA Coach of the Year award of her career. The Seawolves put together a dominant season as they also took home the CCAA Offensive, Defensive and Freshman of the Year awards as they earned the #1 seed in the conference tournament. Salzmann would also produce two more program All-Americans in Julia Pritchard and Lexi Zandonella-Arasa.
In 2015, Salzmann earned her second CCAA Coach of the Year honor after leading the Seawolves to their first-ever CCAA title, which was also the first CCAA title for any women's team at Sonoma State since joining the conference in 1998-99. The Seawolves finished the year going 14-3-3 overall with a perfect 10-0-2 mark in CCAA action. She also led SSU to its first NCAA tournament win since 1998 with a 2-0 victory over Point Loma in the First Round of the NCAA's in Azusa.
In 2014, Salzmann and the Seawolves opened with 10 consecutive victories en route to a 14-5-1 record and a CCAA Championship Tournament appearance, but a loss to sixth-ranked Cal State L.A. in the conference semifinals ended the season for SSU.
5356In just her second year with the program in 2012, Salzmann led Sonoma State to its best season in 13 years, sporting a record of 16-3-2 which helped the Seawolves to earn hosting rights for the First and Second Rounds of the NCAA tournament. Prior to the NCAA's, Sonoma State qualified for the CCAA tournament for the first time in four years after capturing the program's first CCAA North Division title since 2008. SSU advanced to the title match and tied UC San Diego, but the Seawolves fell short of the conference championship after losing in penalty kicks. It wouldn't matter in the NCAA selection process, however, as SSU emerged as the No. 1 seed in the West Region. After a first round bye, the Seawolves hosted Western Washington, but Sonoma State fell in double overtime, 2-1, and was eliminated from national title contention.
Salzmann first season at Sonoma State in 2011 saw the team double their win total from the previous year and just miss out on a trip to the CCAA Championship Tournament. The Seawolves went 8-7-3 and featured three all-conference performers and two NSCAA All-Academic choices. Sonoma State was also recognized after the season with a Sportsmanship Award by the NSCAA.
Prior to arriving at Sonoma State, Salzmann Dunn spent four seasons as head coach at Santa Rosa Junior College. Salzmann has led the Bear Cubs to Big 8 Conference championships in each of her four seasons at the helm. She was named conference coach of the year all four years and, in 2008 after guiding her team to a No. 3 national ranking, she was named NSCAA West Region and NSCAA National Coach of the Year.
Her 2010 team was ranked as high as No. 4 in the nation and in four seasons she coached six All-Americans and eight All-West Region student-athletes.
Salzmann played three seasons at Sonoma State, from 1994 to 1996, capping her career with NSCAA All-American honors as a senior. That season she led SSU in scoring with 16 goals and, coupled with her 15-goal output as a junior in ’95, she owns two of the three highest single-season goal totals in school history.
An NSCAA All-West Region selection as a junior and senior, she currently ranks second in school history with 38 goals and fourth with 83 points. This fall she will be inducted into the SSU Athletics Hall of Fame for her exploits on the pitch.
“I had the privilege of playing for the greatest coaches and teams at Sonoma State, and it is such an honor to assume the head coaching position of a program that changed the course of my life,” said Salzmann. “I plan to give back to the university and the women's soccer program what it once gave to me.”
Following her career at SSU, Salzmann played semi-pro soccer with the Sacramento Storm and Sacramento Thunder (1997-99) and NEC Nijmegen of Holland (2000-01).
A native of Santa Rosa, Salzmann was an all-conference and all-county honoree at Piner High School. She also played one season at Santa Rosa Junior College, where she led her team in scoring and was an all-league selection.
Salzmann got her start in coaching in 1998 when she led her club team, Santa Rosa United Thunder, to the state cup title. The story of Salzmann and her evolving relationship with her team was turned into a book, entitled The Beautiful Game: 16 Girls And The Soccer Season That Changed Everything. Disney currently owns the movie rights to the book.
Salzmann has enjoyed much success at the club level, winning countless tournaments, and from 2008 to 2010 she was the girl’s director of coaching for Santa Rosa United.
As head coach of the Sonoma County Sol from 2007 to 2009, Salzmann guided a team that competed in the Women’s Premier Soccer League (WPSL), one of the top female leagues in the world.
Salzmann first high school coaching assignment came at Ursuline High School in Santa Rosa, where, as co-head coach, she led her team to an NCS Championship and a No. 2 national ranking. The next year she guided her alma mater, Piner High School, as head coach.
She got her first taste of coaching at the collegiate level in 2001 when she assisted former SSU head coach Peter Reynaud at Long Beach State. She helped lead the 49ers for three seasons before coming home for one season as an assistant at Sonoma State (2005).
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