Miss California Alyssa Campanella Crowned Miss USA 2011 [VIDEO]

In what came down to a battle between two best friends, Alyssa Campanella of Los Angeles, California was crowned Miss USA 2011 Sunday night at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, NV.

The 21-year-old beauty beat out Miss Tennessee Ashley Durham to take the title, the 60th in the pageant’s long-running history.

Campanella faced an uphill battle on her road to victory, including a tough question from the judges about legalizing marijuana. Campanella spoke in favor of medicinal marijuana, but questioned whether it should be legalized entirely.

With a victory tonight, Campanella will represent the United States at the 2011 Miss Universe pageant, which will be held this September in Brazil.

Madeline Mitchell of Alabama and Ana Rodriguez of Texas finished in third and fourth place, respectively.

Watch the winning moment below.

[PEOPLE]