Townsville fire to win WNBL title after OT thrillerSebastian TanAAPSun, 1 March 2026 4:05PM
Courtney Woods has spearheaded the Townsville Fire to the WNBL championship, defeating the Perth Lynx 108-105 after overtime to confirm redemption for last year’s heartbreaking grand final loss.
Knowing a defeat in front of the sold-out Perth High Performance Centre on Sunday would end the Lynx’s chances of claiming a first title since 1992, the home side started emphatically, darting out to a six-point quarter-time lead.
Townsville weathered the storm with captain Woods dazzling, despite having to undergo glue surgery during the third period after copping a Han Xu elbow to the head.
Her career-high 28 points, along with eight rebounds and seven assists, steered them to their second championship in four years and a fifth all-time for Queensland’s sole club.
41 lead changes occurred, but when the Fire were down by three in the final quarter, sharp shooter Miela Sowah (18 points) scored an emphatic triple to tie the scores with 3.7 seconds left.
With a plethora of stars off the court after getting into foul trouble, it was Sowah who rose to the occasion again, sinking a crucial basket with 7.4 seconds remaining in overtime to secure the win.
Alicia Froling also provided the fireworks, posting 25 points and eight rebounds, while backup point guard Lucy Olsen had 15 points and five assists.
The enthralling victory completes the Fire’s dominant season, in which they were the minor premiers, after losing to the Bendigo Spirit in last year’s grand final series.
It also confirms coach Shannon Seebohm as one of the best mentors in the league, as he becomes one of the few coaches to win two championships.
For Perth, their hopes of claiming a first title in 34 years are over after also going down 88-79 in game one in the best-of-three series on Thursday.
The loss also marks the Lynx’s third grand final defeat in five years after going down in 2022 and 2024.
Han was typically inspirational with 18 points, nine rebounds and four blocks, while Lynx teammate Anneli Maley recorded another double-double with 27 points and 19 rebounds.
Alex Ciabattoni (23 points) and Ally Wilson (13 points, nine assists, nine rebounds) were also busy keeping Perth in the game.
The Lynx went on an 11-2 early run, but the Fire stepped up to close the deficit to 26-20 at quarter-time.
Perth struggled to find the net in the second term, and Townsville pounced to surge to a 50-45 advantage at the main break.
The Lynx swung the momentum back in their favour after a lengthy timeout for Woods’ head injury, going on a 15-3 spurt.
But the Fire replied with a 6-0 run to retake the lead.
Both teams went tit for tat in a frantic fourth quarter and overtime, but it was Sowah’s last-gasp shots that won Townsville the championship.
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