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Erin Chastain
Erin Chastain enters her fourth season at the helm in 2024 with a career record of 23-20-10.
A four-year starter and three-year captain for the Gophers in the 1990s, Chastain is the fifth head coach in program history. The Plymouth, Minn., native earned her bachelor's degree from the Carlson School of Management in International Business in 1997.
Chastain guided the team to an 8-6-3 record in her first season, including an unbeaten 4-0-3 mark in non-conference play to open the year. Minnesota finished the 2021 campaign ranking 26th in the NCAA with a .529 shutout percentage, tallying nine total shutouts, and did not allow a goal until the eighth match of the season. The Maroon and Gold were the last team to concede a goal in all of NCAA Division I soccer and closed the year ranked 48th in the country allowing less than one goal per game (0.85). The 2021 team also outscored its opponents by an 18-7 margin at Elizabeth Lyle Robbie Stadium leading to 5-3-2 mark at home.
Offensively, Minnesota was the second-highest scoring team in Big Ten Conference play in 2021 finding the back of the net 19 times in 10 matches, while 10 different players recorded at least one goal. That included a 4-1 victory at home against Penn State Oct. 3, where the Nittany Lions suffered their worst conference loss in nearly a decade, and a 5-0 shutout of Illinois.
In her second season leading the Maroon and Gold, Chastain guided the team to an 8-8-3 record, its first Big Ten Tournament berth since 2018, and the first in the Chastain Era. Minnesota didn’t concede more than two goals in a match and earned its first result against a top ten opponent, No. 8 Rutgers, since 2015.
Under Chastain’s guidance, graduate transfer Gabbie Cesarone was named a CSC Academic All-American, the first Gopher since April Bockin in 2018. Cesarone was also recognized to the All-Big Ten Second and Tournament Teams for her efforts in the backline.
Four other Gophers achieved CSC Academic Awards following the 2022 season including: Sophia Boman, McKenna Buisman, Elizabeth Overberg, and Megan Plaschko. Boman also received All-Big Ten Second Team nods while Alana Dressely was a Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree.
Minnesota went 7-6-4 in Chastain’s third season, competing against eight top 25 teams throughout the season. The Golden Gophers outshot their opponents 264-141 and outscored them 26-16. Following the conclusion of the season, Minnesota saw four individuals earn All-Big Ten accolades. Captain Sophia Boman and graduate transfer Megan Nemec received spots on the All-Big Ten Second Team, Kate Childers earned All-Freshman Team honors, and Elizabeth Overberg received the Sportsmanship Award.
Off the field, six Gophers received CSC Academic All-District awards for their accomplishments in the classroom. Sophia Boman, Izzy Brown, Sophia Romine, Abi Frandsen, Elizabeth Overberg, and Megan Nemec all earned the honor.
Chastain came to Minnesota with more than 20 years of coaching experience, which included 14 as head coach at DePaul. While at DePaul, Chastain's squad went 78-44-26 during the final eight seasons and won the Big East regular season championship in 2014 and 2016, claimed the Big East tournament title in 2014, qualified for seven-straight conference tournaments and earned berths in the NCAA Tournament in 2013 and 2014. The Blue Demons were nationally ranked for the first time in program history under Chastain (No. 20 in 2009) and climbed to a program record No. 7 in 2014.
She led the Blue Demons to the best season in program history in 2014 ending the season with a 16-1-4 record and the fifth-best winning percentage in the country. DePaul set a school record with a 20-match unbeaten streak and closed the regular season without a loss. She was named Big East Coach of the Year for her efforts in 2014 and was honored as the NSCAA Northeast Region Coach of the Year in 2013 and 2014.
Chastain, who serves on the NCAA Women's Soccer Championship Committee, recruited and developed five conference player of the year award winners at DePaul. She also coached one All-American, four Academic All-Americans, one MAC Hermann Trophy candidate and one Senior CLASS Finalist.
Chastain has developed professional players as well as numerous individuals that have gone on to play in the National Women's Soccer League or overseas. Her teams also excel in the classroom, as DePaul earned 13-straight United Soccer Coaches Team Academic Awards.
She spent five seasons as an assistant coach at Santa Clara before making the move to DePaul. During her tenure with the Broncos, the program reached the NCAA championship game in 2002, the semifinals in 2004 and the quarterfinals in 2005. Chastain also helped guide the program to West Coast Conference titles in four of her five seasons. As the lead recruiter, she landed three classes from 2002-06 that ranked in the nation's top four by Soccer America.
Prior to Santa Clara, Chastain was the top assistant coach at Northwestern for three seasons.
Chastain (then Hussey) was a four-year starter at Minnesota from 1993-96 and three-year captain for the Gophers. She played in all 82 matches during her career and ranks seventh in program history in points (83), eighth in goals (29), tied for seventh in assists (25), tied for sixth in game-winning goals (10) and tied for tenth in shots (178).
She earned All-Big Ten Second Team honors in 1995 and was a first team honoree in 1996. She was named All-Great Lakes Region Third Team in 1996 by the NSCAA and helped lead Minnesota to the 1995 Big Ten Championship along with NCAA Tournament berths in 1995 and 1996. Off the field, Chastain was a three-time Academic All-Big Ten selection from 1994-96 and earned Academic All-District honors in 1996.
Chastain and her husband, Chad, have two daughters, Harper and Brooklyn. Chad's sister, Brandi, is one of USA Soccer's all-time greats, having led the United States to a 1999 FIFA Women's World Cup title.
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