Since 2023, there have been plenty of wins, a few tough losses, a coaching change, players graduating and one constant for Durango High School girls soccer: Ryne Neiman in goal.
The Demons have won 71% of their games since Neiman’s freshman year. From then to now, Neiman has grown from an intimidated, nervous freshman playing with senior stars, Mason Rowland, Riley Campbell and Sophie Ragsdale to being one of the senior stars.
Neiman has 238 career saves and has used her height, length and great timing to make saves that have bailed out mistakes by the Durango defense. Neiman has been around long enough that all the opposing coaches in the league know her by name in the handshake line.
“She’s a moving brick wall,” Durango girls soccer head coach Zac Keeler said. “She’s someone who’s very dependable. Whenever a teammate makes a mistake, they know they can rely on her to make sure she follows through. She’s quite a leader. We’ve used her as a captain twice now, and players look up to her.”
Durango has three playoff wins with Neiman in net. The Demons are ranked third in 4A and are poised to add multiple playoff wins to Neiman’s final tally before she takes her talents to Fort Lewis College in the fall.
“I'm feeling confident,” Neiman said. “Every game, I notice something that we're improving on. So that’s really motivating for me and the team, because we keep going upward. That's a good trajectory for the rest of the season.”
Since the beginning of her soccer journey, Neiman has been motivated by her family. Her mom, Steffi, played college basketball and her dad, Dusty, played college baseball. It was Neiman’s older sister, Adde, who first got into soccer and Neiman followed. As the older sister, Adde was the one who wanted to score first. The younger sister was on the receiving end of that in goal, starting her goalie journey in grade school.
By the time she got to eighth grade, Neiman started playing with her club team in Albuquerque. She began experiencing different types of coaching with goalie coaches that helped her improve a lot. She started playing against higher-level opponents in club, which led to her needing to make higher-level saves and communicate with her teammates at a higher level.
Neiman was really motivated to play her freshman year at Durango. She wanted an extra year to play with her sister and her cousin, Carter. However, her confidence was crushed in her first varsity game when the goal posts must’ve seemed miles apart as 5A Ralston Valley crushed the Demons in an 8-0 win. It also didn’t help that Neiman was splitting time early in the season. But once she got her first start, she was motivated to stay on the field the entire time with those star upperclassmen.
“It was nerve-wracking for me because I wanted to live up to their standards,” Neiman said. “But at the same time, I knew they wanted me on the field too, so I felt like they had my back, which was reassuring.”
Neiman’s sophomore year in 2024 was also a big jump for her. She got a ton of confidence from the Demons’ 1-1 tie against Ralston Valley early in the season. She knew she could play against hard teams, make good saves and be versatile. That game made Neiman feel like her hard work was paying off.
The flip side of that emotion was at the end of the season when the Demons were upset in the first round at home against Dakota Ridge. It was Neiman’s biggest heartbreak because it meant the end of her time playing high school soccer with her sister and cousin. She knew the team had potential.
That potential turned into motivation for her junior year and into production that season. The Demons won 14 consecutive games in 2025, with Neiman responsible for nine shutouts and only three goals allowed during that winning streak. She learned how to be successful at her size and realized that she’s not a little nimble goalie. At 5-foot-10-inches, she doesn’t have to fly around the net like shorter keepers.
Last season ended in the state quarterfinals at Lutheran, 3-0. Neiman remembers her mistakes more than anything else from that game, like how she thought she could’ve been a step closer on that first goal. She also remembers the team culture wasn’t great that game, and that’s something Keeler and the entire team have made a priority this season.
“You're always hearing Ryne on the field, above the crowd, above her own team or her own teammates, and oftentimes, when I'm about to say something to the team, she's already said it,” Keeler said. “So, just let her continue to be that vocal point for the team. It's usually something that is very positive for them to try to utilize.”
Another priority for Neiman this season has been playing with her feet. She’s had the benefit of working on her catching, footwork and general hand-eye coordination playing basketball in the winter. But playing with her feet will be important for her prospects at FLC. Skyhawks women’s soccer head coach Damian Clarke also wants her to improve her agility and decision-making.
Neiman was considering playing soccer at FLC, MSU Denver and Northern Colorado. She was drawn to FLC because of its recent success, the chance to play with her sister, and when she was there, it felt like the right place to go.
Before she starts training and playing on Dirks Field, Neiman has her final high school season to finish. If the Demons can stay inside the top four of the state rankings, they could have three home playoff games before the state final four. Durango has the chance to go to the final four for the first time since 2022.
“It would mean the world,” Neiman said. “If it's my last year game with Durango High School, I definitely want them to be here. That's motivating for me … just to share it on this field with these girls is going to be really special to me. I really want to do well just to earn that. I remember my eighth grade year, my sister made it to the final four and going to watch that team play. I really want to achieve that.”
bkelly@durangoherald.com
