CANBERRA (WNBL) - The Canberra Capitals have been crowned the 2008/09 Australian Defence Force Women's National Basketball League Champions in front of a sell-out crowd at the AIS Arena tonight.

The Capitals held off a determined Boomers outfit in the Grand Final to take the club's sixth title, 61-58.

After a close tussle in the first half a third quarter run, led by Grand Final MVP Natalie Hurst, gave them the margin they needed to hold out for the win. Canberra point guard Hurst scored 12 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals.

The capacity crowd was involved from the start, erupting as Caps guard/forward Michelle Musselwhite drained a three before grabbing a steal down the other end. The Boomers then went on a 6-0 run but Canberra's Jess Bibby and Marianna Tolo hit the floor running when they entered the game five minutes in. Tolo immediately got stuck in with a block and grabbed a rebound before Bibby put Canberra in front with a quick basket and followed it up by knocking down a long-range trey for a 8-6 lead.

Bulleen centre Elyse Penaluna got into the game with two baskets from outside the paint and when 3-point specialist Lisa Pardon delivered, the Boomers were back in front. Boomers point guard Sharin Milner went coast to coast but the Caps had one play left and captain Kellie Abrams took control, feeding the ball to Tolo for a buzzer-beating lay-up.

Bulleen held a 15-13 lead at the first break and went on a 5-0 run at the start of the second term. Bulleen veteran Katrina Hibbert knocked down a three but as Hurst went on a rampage, dishing an assist to Tracey Beatty, grabbing a steal and drilling a three, Canberra went on their own run, 13-2.

Coaches Carrie Graf and Cheryl Chambers were quick to call a timeout as both teams went on short scoring runs and after Chambers called Bulleen to the bench Milner came out and iced a three.

Tolo continued to work hard under the basket to grab four rebounds and four points in the quarter but Milner would not be denied and she levelled the scores 32-32 at halftime.

Momentum see-sawed in the third quarter as first Bulleen then Canberra went on scoring runs; Penaluna drove past Bishop and hit a jump shot before Hurst knocked in two threes.

Chambers called a time out for the Boomers but when the players came off the bench Penaluna was awarded her third and fourth fouls within two minutes and was sent back to the bench.

Musselwhite exploded late in the third term for seven points in the last two minutes of the quarter and the Caps led 48-42 at the last break.

Hibbert tried to ignite Bulleen in the final term with a quick basket but Canberra worked the ball around as Bishop, Tolo and Hurst made some tough baskets.

It was pocket rocket Milner that put a stop to the Canberra run to keep the margin from stretching out but as Musselwhite drained another three the Caps were up by seven, 57-46 with five minutes remaining.

Bulleen battled hard in the in the remaining five as captain Desi Glaubitz netted a three and two-time league MVP Hibbert and 20 -year-old Penaluna kept fighting to pull the score back to one point, 59-58 with 1:23 on the clock.

Neither team was going to give up and the league's best rebounder, Bishop, grabbed her 14th board to give Tolo a chance to put the Caps out by three points with eleven seconds remaining.

Bulleen took their final timeout to plan their last play and they put the ball in the trusty hands of Hibbert but her attempt at a three to level the scores rimmed out as, fittingly, Canberra captain Kellie Abrams grabbed the rebound in the dying seconds and the arena erupted once more.

Celebrating her sixth championship with the Capitals, MVP Hurst said the team did what they needed to on the night.

"It was a collective effort," Hurst said.

"Our big girls made some tough shots, they got Penaluna in foul trouble and that was a big thing for us. You couldn't ask for anything more from this bunch of girls."

In only her second game back from a calf injury Hurst showed no signs of strain as she made some big plays.

"I had to take those shots and I was glad that a couple went down in clutch time," Hurst said.

"Anything I can do to help my team out and get [the championship] it's amazing."

Canberra coach Graf said the depth the Capitals had off the bench helped them seal the win tonight.

"It would have been hard to pick the MVP," Graf said.

"That's the strength of this team, it was a really deep team with different combinations... Musselwhite's been in four losing grand finals and I said to her at the end 'that's why you came here mate'. She played big when we needed to play big and that's why it's hard to separate an MVP from a team performance."

As 5000 basketball fans celebrated with the Caps after the game Graf said the enthusiasm of the crowd was testament to the profile of the sport in the capital.

"Basketball's alive and well here in Canberra," Graf said.

"Five thousand people at a women's basketball grand final it was huge."

The Caps brought it back.

At a Glance
Canberra Capitals 61 (Michelle Musselwhite 13, Marianna Tolo 12, Natalie Hurst 12) defeated
Bulleen Boomers 58 (Katrina Hibbert 14, Elyse Penaluna 14, Sharin Milner 12)

Basketball Australia