enlarge Joe Phelan/Blethen Maine News Service

Allyssa Vitalone waves the net and Katelyn Atwood joins in the celebration after Valley beat Rangeley 40-39 to capture the Western Class D girls’ basketball championship.

enlarge Joe Phelan/Blethen Maine News Service

Hayley White, left, and Angela White of Rangeley defend against Valley's Allyssa Vitalone during the Western Class D final. Valley rallied for a 40-39 win.

AUGUSTA — First Cindy Schultz made history. Then she made a dramatic 3-pointer with 12 seconds left in the Western Class D girls’ basketball championship game.

And, finally, the Valley High sophomore guard turned a risky defensive play into a rewarding one to cap a wild 40-39 victory over Rangeley on Saturday afternoon at the Augusta Civic Center.

It was quite a day for Schultz and second-ranked Valley (17-3), which ended No. 5 Rangeley’s run through the tournament in dramatic fashion.

“We did it,” said Schultz, who finished with 18 points, including four 3-pointers that gave her a record 13 in the regional tournament. “Now we’re Western Maine champs. It’s the greatest feeling in the world.”

The Cavaliers will play undefeated Woodland in the state final Saturday at the Bangor Auditorium. It’s a rematch of the 2006 championship game, won by Woodland, which is also the defending champion.

Valley almost didn’t make it, until Schultz dribbled past midcourt, stopped at the top of the key and drained a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left to turn a two-point deficit into a 40-39 lead.

“It was so beautiful,” Schultz said. “I felt the pressure. I didn’t want to lose it for my seniors. It felt beautiful when I let it go.”

Added Valley Coach Gordon Hartwell on the winning shot: “The rotation off the hands looked good. I followed the shot and was thinking, ‘it’s on line, it’s on line’ and then, ‘it’s good!’ ”

Schultz drew just one defender because Rangeley Coach Heidi Deery said she didn’t want to leave anyone open underneath the basket.

“We could’ve double-teamed her but she could’ve passed inside and taken a layup,” Deery said. “I’d rather take the percentage.

“I knew she was going to make it. When she came down the court, I was thinking ‘What are we going to do on the offensive end to answer that.’ ”

The Lakers, who made just two field goals in the second half, never got that chance. With under 10 seconds remaining, Schultz stepped in front of Allie Hammond near midcourt and drew a charge. The Cavaliers then ran off the final four seconds to end the game.

Schultz acknowledged she took a risk, because a foul would’ve put Hammond at the line with a chance to win the game.

Hammond already had won two games for Rangeley this week, one on a buzzer-beater against Vinalhaven; the other on two free throws with 10 seconds left to beat top-seeded Buckfield.

“Allie Hammond got past Katelyn (Atwood) and she didn’t have anyone to pass to, so I thought if I could cut off baseline it would be a charge,” Schultz said. “Luckily, it was.”

Added Atwood, one of four Valley seniors, on the game’s final 12 seconds: “I don’t even know what happened. It happened so quick. It was amazing.”

Rangeley scored just four points in each of the first, third and fourth quarters. The Lakers made just two of their 11 shots in the first quarter and trailed 11-4 to start the second. But Angela White scored 14 of her 16 points in the second quarter, including six in a 20-second span that put the Lakers up 28-22.

Hammond then hit a 3-pointer at the buzzer to give the Lakers a 31-22 lead at intermission.

“We had to dig in a little bit on defense in the second half,” Hartwell said.

The Cavaliers did, holding Rangeley to eight points in the second half. Valley chipped away at the deficit but didn’t take its first lead of the half until Schultz’s winning shot.

“I cried,” said Valley forward Allyssa Vitalone, who grabbed 24 rebounds. “I really did. It was the best feeling in the world. It was priceless. We weren’t going home with a loss. We had gone too far to do that.”