STANDISH – Ariel McConkey never dared to dream of being in the situation she faced Saturday afternoon.

With the bases loaded and the state championship on the line, the junior second baseman stepped to the plate with the opportunity of a lifetime.

“I never even imagined being up here in extra innings and just needing to hit the ball like that, but it’s like the best situation you can be in,” said McConkey.

It is extra special if you can deliver in that moment, and that’s just what McConkey did.

Facing an 0-2 count, she drilled a single to right field to plate Hannah Hill for the winning run in the eighth inning. Her walk-off clutch hit delivered the Raiders a 2-1 win over Medomak Valley for the Class B state title.

“That was just so nerve-wracking, but it was such an amazing feeling,” said McConkey.

It was the second straight state crown for the Raiders (19-1) and the second in a row over an eighth-ranked Panther team.

The victory was a final milestone for Hill, the two-time Gatorade Player of the Year, and fellow seniors Ellen Head, Tanya Randall, Desiree Ramsay and Heather Tripp.

“It wasn’t until I saw home plate a foot in front of me, and I stepped on it that I was like ‘Oh my God, it’s happening a second time,'” said Hill, who has a full scholarship to Seton Hall next year. “It was crazy. It’s so hard to describe, but it was amazing.”

It was another tough-luck loss for the Panthers (16-5), who lost to the Raiders 6-2 last year after leading midway through the game.

“We were that close again this year,” said Medomak Valley coach Glenn Barbour. “I have to give Fryeburg credit. They got the runners on base, and they simply put the ball in play. It doesn’t mean you have to swing for the fences. You just have to put the ball in play.”

Hill finished with 15 strikeouts and allowed just two hits. Kayla Vannah, who will attend Saint Joseph’s College next year with Fryeburg’s Tripp, allowed eight hits, three coming in the final inning.

In the bottom of the eighth, with one out, Hill singled. She advanced on a Brylie Walker infield hit to shortstop Kasey Brenner as the Panthers couldn’t get an out at second because nobody covered the bag. Tripp drew a walk to load the bases.

“My legs were shaking in the box,” said McConkey, who took extra batting practice at 7 a.m. Saturday morning. “She’s a pretty good pitcher. She knows how to hit her spots. I was just telling myself that ‘I’m not going to strike out and I’m going to hit the ball.'”

Vannah got two quick strikes on McConkey, but after fouling one off, she delivered.

“I was thinking before I went up that I could drive in the winning run,” said McConkey. “I was just so excited, and I was nervous at the same time. When I hit it, it was right off the meat of my bat.”

McConkey is the Raiders’ cleanup hitter and was just the type of batter that Coach Fred Apt wanted to see at the plate at that moment.

“I felt pretty confident,” said Apt. “Ariel’s a pretty free-swinging kid. She’s one of those kids in batting practice that we just let hit. You don’t change anything. She’s a free-swinging kid, and you just let her go.”

The Raiders took a 1-0 lead in the fourth when Randall doubled home Walker, but the Panthers came right back in the fifth to tie the game. Rachel Keefe, who led off with a double, scored on a Benner infield hit to first.

“That’s the way they’re going to battle,” said Barbour. “We seem to do it in a lot of games. That’s all I wanted was the one run – just to tie it back up and get a new game.”

The Panthers could have had more. Medomak had runners at second and third with no outs. Even after the Raiders failed to get Benner out on her hit, the Panthers had runners on and a chance to take the lead. Hill struck out a pair and got a pop out to Head at short.

“That was a hard situation,” said Hill. “That really made us work hard, but it also made us bounce back.”

Medomak never got another runner on base. Head and Randall made some fine defensive plays while Hill struck out seven of the last 12 batters she faced.

“A good team like that can break it open,” said Apt of the Panthers. “One mistake by us and they could break it open. We showed a lot of character, and I’m really proud of them.”