“Tony’s strong leadership style and passion for Iowa State soccer came through in an extraordinary way during the interview process,” Sanders said. “He possesses a tireless work ethic and demonstrated a commitment to the personal development and success of our student-athletes. Iowa State University will benefit from his commitment to making our soccer program a bigger part of the local community and to elevating its profile on the national stage.”
Minatta, who served as an assistant coach at Iowa State the past two seasons, helped return Cyclone soccer to the Big 12 tournament with a fourth-place conference finish, the highest for ISU since 2007. Iowa State finished the 2013 season in the top five in the Big 12 in shots (289), assists (25), assists per game (1.25), saves (93) and shutouts (seven). In his first year on staff, Minatta guided the Cyclones to their first 10-win season since 2005 and the second-most goals scored (37) in a season in program history.
“During my time on the Iowa State soccer staff I’ve come to really appreciate Iowa State University and the Ames community for their commitment to Cyclone soccer,” Minatta said. “I’m very honored to be offered this opportunity to continue to build on the success of the program in recent years. I couldn’t be more excited to remain a Cyclone and be a member of the Ames community. I look forward to elevating the program and accomplishing things we have not done before.”
Minatta came to Iowa State after serving as the assistant director of coaching at the Fort Collins (Colo.) Soccer Club since 2005.
Minatta graduated from the University of Nevada Las Vegas (UNLV) in 2003 with a bachelor's degree in English.
