Copyright Arkansas Online
MARION -- Marion clinched an outright 5A-East Conference title more than two weeks ago, so some worried about the Patriots being able to ramp back up for this week's Class 5A state volleyball tournament. Maybe not as much Monday. Marion dominated in the opening round at Fidelity Bank Arena, topping Sylvan Hills in three sets (25-12, 25-7, 25-6) in the state tournament for the second time in three seasons. "I thought after our nerves kind of settled in, I felt like we played and played well," Marion Coach Lisa Beasley said. "We played pretty clean. The student section showing up and showing out gave us a boost and got us going. We've been waiting for this a long time, and we were excited to play." The Patriots improved to 25-2 overall this season after running the table in the 5A-East with a 16-0 mark in league play. Sylvan Hills' season ended at 12-12-1 overall. The teams split the first 16 points before Marion ripped off the first run of the afternoon, starting when Jaida Sturdivant tallied a block point followed by a kill to give the Patriots a 10-8 lead. Sylvan Hills called timeout when Kennedy Bullins came up with a kill for a 12-8 Marion lead. Reese Goodwin served a pair of aces following the timeout and came up with a kill to extend the Patriot advantage. Kendall Brown slammed a kill to give the Patriots their first double-digit lead of the afternoon at 22-12, then later Brown served an ace and Kaitlyn Austin registered a kill to close out the set. The teams again split the first eight points of the second set. Marion took the lead for good on a Brown kill, a Bullins ace and back-to-back block points from Sturdivant, the latter giving her team a 10-4 lead. Marion took its first double-digit lead of the second set at 16-6 on a Brown ace, then another one gave it an 18-6 lead and forced a timeout. Aynslee Coad, Austin, Bullins and Brown came up with kills later on to help the Patriots close out a 25-7 victory in the second that pushed them one set away from the state quarterfinals. Marion quickly handled business in the third set, bolting out to a 19-1 lead. The run began with back-to-back kills from Austin for a 3-0 advantage, then three Bullins kills pushed the Patriots in front 8-1. A Brown kill preceded an Austin ace that gave the hosts a 10-1 lead and forced a Sylvan Hills timeout. The Patriot run continued when Marlee Williams recorded her first of three kills in the third set for an 11-1 lead. Bullins and Williams teamed up for blocks on back-to-back points, followed by a Brown kill that gave Marion a 19-1 lead in the third. "I think the last time we maybe did something like that was like 2010, if then," Beasley said. "It's been a long time. We may not have ever done that. It's just very difficult to do that at the state tournament against quality teams. But I'm really proud at the same time." The Patriots kept up the pressure late in the set and got blocks from Sturdivant and Bullins. A pair of kills by Brown closed out the victory and put Marion into the state quarterfinals for the fifth time in six seasons. "We are playing for each other, with each other. They're putting we over me," Beasley said. "It's been a great season, a great ride. I'm glad it's not over yet. I thought we handled our preparation about as well as you could hope for. We were excited for the challenge, and we performed well."
