With just over two minutes left in regulation, Penns Valley’s Ellie Ronig received a well-placed pass from Olivia Homan, heading it over Ford’s and watching it make the necessary bounce into the net for the game-tying score. One overtime period and most of the next later, she’d be there on the game-winning assist as well, as teammate Elle Dinges netted the game-winning goal to grant the Rams the 2-1 victory.

“That’s a tough one because I thought for sure we would be in good position to win based on the way we started the game,” said Central Mountain head coach Ryan Veltri on the loss. “We’ve got to find a way to execute the little things right. We were in on goal quite a bit, and we’ve got to find a way to put that ball in the back of the net.”

Through a tense, back-and-forth first half where the teams traded shots on goal, it was Central Mountain that drew first blood. Junior Leah Karstetter received the ball, made a move to lose a defender and fired right to the center of the net, just above Penns Valley goalkeeper Emma Marks’s head.

However, as the minutes steadily trickled by, the team’s many opportunities to build on that lead proved to be in vain. 60 minutes came and went without a score, with some shots being halted by Marks and others skating past either goal post. Coupled with the team dealing with early-season condition issues, it was enough to steadily turn the momentum Penns Valley’s way.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Penns Valley girls soccer players celebrate their game-winning goal against Central Mountain on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Rams won 2-1.

“We just have to put ourselves in those positions in practice and really execute that. But then, practice has to come to the game,” said Veltri. “We spent a week looking at things and talking about things and there were a bunch of times today where we didn’t do the things we were doing at practice.”

It was a trend that overshadowed strong outings from freshman defender Chloe Foltz and Ford, the latter which finished with a game-high 12 saves.

When the Rams began shifting the tide and getting more attacks going, it was Ford that kept the Wildcats one step ahead. Three of her saves came in the waning minutes of regulation, one which fell off her fingertips on a well-placed placed ball from Ronig with five minutes to go.

“(Foltz) marked a really tough player and did her best, and I think Ford made some unbelievable saves,” said Veltri. “We have to celebrate those two and what they did today. They did what they needed to do; they just need all 11 players to do the same thing.”

On the other side, Penns Valley kept just as composed.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain's Kendall Veltri dribbles the ball downfield during a girls soccer matchup against Penns Valley on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 2-1.

Having not scored a goal through the first 235 minutes of its season, its youth-centric core could’ve crumpled when dealing with Central Mountain’s wall of defense. But its upperclassmen stepped up when it mattered, creating opportunity after opportunity. And eventually, it was able to extend the game.

“You could see it on the girls’ faces, a little bit of relief that they finally figured it out,” said Penns Valley head coach Sean Hermann on that game-tying goal.

“We’ve got a small squad this year, did a lot of changing, moving girls around to different positions they haven’t played. So, for them to finally get things clicking in the second half, it was amazing.”

Then, when its momentum drained through the ten-minute break between regulation and overtime, it was able to steadily bring it back. With many anticipating a tie late in the second overtime period, the Rams found one opportunity and ran with it.

Romig received a great pass to set her and Dinges up for a two-on-one breakaway before dishing a similar pass to Dinges in the box. Dinges took it, hesitated just enough to set up her shot without letting the defender catch up and delivered the game-winner to the bottom-right corner of the net.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain girls soccer players celebrate a goal from Leah Karstetter (3) during a girls soccer matchup against Penns Valley on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 2-1.

“Very good composure from Elle to just get that in. She did a fantastic job with that,” said Hermann on Dinges. “Very proud of her, proud of the whole team.”

With the win, Penns Valley (1-2) heads into a tough matchup against Bedford on Tuesday with momentum, having felt things out enough to secure its first goals and victory of the season. That game is set for 5 p.m at Penns Valley.

“We’re just going to rest up. The girls are tired (after a three-game week); they’ve worked hard all week,” said Hermann. “We’ve got a lot of newer and younger players that are learning a lot from my seniors, very proud of the seniors for leading them so well and just looking forward to the rest of the season.”

For Central Mountain (1-1), the loss stings as it also heads into a tough slate, starting with Altoona on Wednesday and Hamburg on Friday before transitioning into PHAC play. That game against Altoona is set for 5:30 p.m. at Central Mountain.

“It is never easy; we are going to be clawing out all the bits, just trying to make sure that we can compete against some of those PHAC teams that are top quality,” said Veltri. “When we play simple, pass the ball, we look like a quality side. We just have to execute that longer in the game.”

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Penns Valley's Ellie Romig, left, battles with Central Mountain's Leah Karstetter, right, for possession during a girls soccer matchup on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 2-1.

Penns Valley 2, Central Mountain 1 (2 OT)

CM – Leah Karstetter (unassisted), 13:53. PV – Ellie Ronig (Olivia Homan), 87:27. PV – Elle Dinges (Ronig), 107:43.

Shots: PV 28, CM 26. Shots on goal: PV 14, CM 11. Corners: PV 11, CM 7. Saves: PV (Emma Marks) 9; CM (Alyssa Ford) 12.

Records: Penns Valley 1-2; Central Mountain 1-1.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Central Mountain goalkeeper Alyssa Ford waits for action to resume during a girls soccer matchup against Penns Valley on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 2-1.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express The Central Mountain girls soccer team runs onto the field ahead of a girls soccer matchup against Penns Valley on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Wildcats fell 2-1.

TIM WEIGHT/For the Express Penns Valley girls soccer players celebrate their game-winning goal against Central Mountain on Saturday, Aug. 30, 2025, at Central Mountain. The Rams won 2-1.