Championship hero Miela Sowah's run to a WNBL ring

• ‍Miela Sowah takes over in clutch to lead Fire to title‍
• MVP Courtney Woods reveals Fire’s clutch secret‍
• Ryan Petrik says Fire were 'better when it mattered'

When the Townsville Fire needed a hero, Miela Sowah delivered.

Not once, but twice.

As if hitting the biggest shot of the season to force overtime in game two of the WNBL championship series - one of the greatest WNBL games ever – wasn’t enough, Sowah served up the go-ahead lay-up with 11 seconds remaining in the extra period to help her squad clinch an extraordinary win over the Perth Lynx.

Her heroics were there for the world to see when she connected on the two most clutch shots of the WNBL season, but those legendary shots don’t exist without the tireless work that she has put in behind the scenes, the hours no one sees.

While it might look effortless for Sowah on the court as one the league’s premier three-point shooter, nothing has come easy for the Queensland native.

Fresh out of college, after four years at Duke University, she was ready to turn pro, but WNBL teams didn’t come calling.

Instead, she had to fight and claw her way onto the Melbourne Boomers 2022-23 roster after training for two weeks with the squad to prove herself and from that moment on, Sowah has taken every opportunity in front of her, trusting the work she has put in.

“It was quite stressful at the time, because obviously you have big ambitions coming out of college, and it didn't quite go as smoothly as I expected,” Sowah told basketball.com.au.

“I ended up having to pay for my own flight down to the Melbourne Boomers for two weeks of training to then secure a spot.

“I was really betting on myself, and I decided to fully commit because I knew what I was capable of and my work ethic. It definitely made me realise early on how it can be a ruthless business, but then it made me want to work harder.

“I put in the work and here we are now. I’m so grateful, and that's why you’ve got to keep working hard. One of my mottos is just work hard because it'll eventually pay off, whether it's short-term or if it's in a few years.”

I think it’s fair to say the airfare was money well spent.

From paying for her own flights to hitting two of the biggest shots in the Fire’s illustrious 25-year history, Sowah’s journey has been one of determination and self-belief.

Her triple to force overtime will go down in WNBL folklore. In a game for the ages, with an incredible 41 lead changes, the Townsville and Perth rivalry hit fever pitch as the two teams traded big play for big play.

She admits her first long-range attempt just a couple of seconds earlier felt good when she shot it, but the second attempt, made possible by a monster offensive rebound from Chantel Horvat, landed with 4.7 seconds remaining and changed the trajectory of the game.

“Honestly, the first one I shot, I actually thought it was going in,” she said.

“Then I saw Chantel get the rebound - she’s a beast on the boards - she threw it out perfectly to me, and I was like, ‘okay, this one now is going in’ and I just let it fly.

“It’s unreal, because it's what you dream of as a kid when you're shooting around, counting down the clock in your head and practicing buzzer beaters.”

Sowah deservedly made the headlines with her clutch shots, but the reason Townsville won the championship was because of a total team effort, with every single player understanding their role, performing their role and making plays when it was their time.

Think of the Horvat offensive board and kick-out to Sowah, Alicia Froling battling like her life depended on it in the paint, Courtney Woods’ epic MVP performance even after copping a knock to the head, and Lucy Olsen’s clutch steal and free throws in the dying seconds of overtime.

There were countless winning plays made by the Fire in the miraculous game two win, and that was a microcosm of their entire season. When they lost 2024-25 Defensive Player of the Year Lauren Cox for the season due to injury, there was always someone ready to step up and make plays.

“The entire team had to step up throughout the season,” she said.

“I think we saw it in game two as well when we got in foul trouble and our bench had to make plays in those minutes.

“Honestly, that game was almost a spitting image of the whole season where everyone had to step up when called upon. That's the cool thing about our team; we had absolute confidence and faith that everyone could do their job, so it was awesome to see everyone play their part in the game and have their moment.”

The culture and belief coach Shannon Seebohm has built in Townsville is the envy of the rest of the league. Players go to Townsville and play the best basketball of their lives, which is the case for each of the five Fire starters.

From the outside looking in it’s as if there’s something magical or even mythical about the Townsville program, but that is discrediting the pure hard work of Seebohm and his staff, general manager Sam Pascoe and every player that commits 110% to the journey.

It’s not luck that the Fire have tasted the ultimate success in two of the past four seasons.

“Townsville as a club is ultra-professional from the top down, and the leaders lead the way on what the standards are,” she said.

“When you see them leading by example, everyone else hops on board.

“Shannon creates an environment for everyone to succeed. He puts you in the right spots to find success and helps you develop in other areas of your game too.

“He just builds confidence and builds trust in the team.”

That confidence and trust emanates from every player that hits the court for the Fire, and Sowah’s 2025/26 campaign – her first playing for Seebohm – was a sight to behold.

One of the most consistent players in the league, Sowah’s shooting prowess helped catapult Townsville the top of table. On over seven three-point attempts per game, Sowah (17.8 points per game) hit an extremely healthy 40.9% of long-range attempts and was the only player to average three or more made triples per game during the regular season.

Sowah looked at home with the Fire, and going back to where it began for her as a development player in 2017-18 completed a full circle moment.

“I remember when I signed, I was thinking I'm running it back to where it all started in my WNBL career and we won a championship that year too,” she said.

“Obviously, I was on the bench, but I loved it, I’ve got the ring still.

“To do it again, there’s just something about Townsville. Certain spots bring back those memories of when I was first here and the club has gone to a whole new level since then, which is amazing because they were incredible back then.

As a 17-year-old, playing alongside the likes of absolute legends in Suzy Batkovic and Cayla George, just to name a couple, Sowah learnt what the league was all about and credits that season for teaching her lessons she then took into her college career.

“That team there was so full of studs,” she said.

“I was stoked to learn from all of them.

“It definitely helped me leading into college and it was also that they were all really good people and were really welcoming. I understood what a championship team looked like from my first year in the league at 17-years-old.”

Sowah’s Championship-clinching greatness holds its own unique chapter in WNBL history and having solidified herself as one of the best guards in Australia, you get the feeling there’s going to be more exciting chapters ahead for the sharpshooter.