Froling’s 26 sends Fire through to Grand Final

• ‍Game 1: Townsville Fire's hot start torches Flyers to take series opener‍
• Game 2: 'Keep your mouth shut': George fires back to force decider
• Game 2: Double double-doubles: Xu and Maley lead Perth sweep

Alicia Froling powered Townsville Fire to a 10-point win on a career night 26 points and nine rebounds as the home side closed out Southside Melbourne Flyers 84–74 in Game 3 of the WNBL26 Semi-Finals Series in Townsville on Sunday, February 22, 2026.

"You know, credit to Southside," Froling said on the final after the final buzzer.

"They came out on Wednesday and smacked us, and then had a really good response tonight too.

"But just so proud of what we did. This crowd’s awesome – we feed off the energy too. And yeah, just really happy with the result.

Froling added nine rebounds, three assists, a steals and two blocks in almost 37 minutes.

"It’s just playing hard," she added.

"That’s what I do. That’s what I am. I’m not obviously probably the most skilled or anything out there, but I’m just going to always play hard.

"You know, I love to win, so just whatever I need to do."

Townsville faces the Perth Lynx in Game 1 on Thursday, February 26, 2026 in Townsville.

"We’ve definitely had a bit of a scare and now we know what we need to do to hopefully go and get that championship."

"It was a tough series," Fire head coach Shannon Seebohm said.

"Credit to Southside – they played great and we’ve had battles every single game pretty much this whole season against them. I think they’re one of those teams that are a tough matchup for us. Christy’s a great coach and she obviously has them well drilled.

"Their star players turned up every game and did a great job and made it super tough on us.

"So really happy to get out of the series and more great experience for our team as well to battle through some of those tough moments.

Fire guard Courtney Woods said Game 3 in any series is always going to be tough.

"Anytime you play a Game 3 both teams are probably feeling a bit tired, so I felt fatigue was going to play a factor," Woods said.

"But Southside are the exact same. They had to travel here, we had to travel back from Melbourne, so you can’t use that as an excuse.

"It was definitely tiring and very physical. Every time we play Southside it’s super physical, but it was really enjoyable."

Southside Melbourne star Cayla George took aim at Flyers critics after they blew out the Fire to force a Game 3 but Woods said Townsville wasn't one of them.

"Cayla made a point to say externally they weren’t getting enough credit," Woods said.

"But our team and our program have absolutely nothing but respect for Southside. We’ve talked openly that they have everything they need.

"Kristi's done a great job. They were a team capable of winning a championship. We knew going into tonight that we had to play a really good game to defeat them.

"So nothing but respect for Southside and how they played this season."

Key Details

• Result: Townsville Fire 84 def. Southside Melbourne Flyers 74
• When: Sunday, 22nd February 2026
• Where: Townsville Entertainment Centre, Townsville
• Attendance: 3,475

By the Numbers

• Alicia Froling (Townsville Fire) starred with 26 points, nine rebounds, three assists and two blocks in 37 minutes.
• Cayla George (Southside Melbourne Flyers) scored 25 points, and had six rebounds, three assists and two steals in 31 minutes.

What Happened

The Fire established early momentum with a balanced first-half performance, leading 53-46 at the break after a high-possession opening that featured 13 lead changes. Townsville's efficiency inside proved crucial, shooting an outstanding 62.9% from two-point range in the first half while converting all seven free-throw attempts.

Alicia Froling dominated proceedings with an exceptional shooting display, connecting on 10-of-17 from the field including a perfect one-from-one from beyond the arc. Her 26-point effort was complemented by stellar contributions from Courtney Woods, who delivered 19 points and seven assists while drawing seven fouls to create scoring opportunities at the charity stripe.

The Flyers battled valiantly through Cayla George's efficient 25-point performance on 5-of-9 shooting from two-point range and an impressive 4-of-9 from downtown. Maddy Rocci provided excellent support with 20 points and eight dimes, but struggled from deep, managing just 2-of-8 from outside the arc despite solid overall field goal shooting.

Townsville's superior shooting accuracy proved decisive, with the Fire converting 58.7% of their field goal attempts compared to the Flyers' 50%. The home side also dominated from the free-throw line, shooting an impressive 83.3% (15-of-18) while Southside managed just 63.2% (12-of-19) from the foul line. The Fire's ball movement was exceptional, dishing out 20 assists on 32 made field goals.

The Fire's bench depth and rebounding advantage helped secure the victory, with Townsville controlling the boards 35-32. Despite the Flyers forcing more turnovers (17-15), they couldn't capitalise sufficiently to overcome the Fire's offensive efficiency and home-court advantage in front of the enthusiastic Townsville Entertainment Centre crowd.