Marion Athletics -

As a result of hosting this fall's state volleyball tournament, the Marion volleyball team will split its home games between 3M Transit Arena, which has been the Patriots' official home venue for 30 seasons, and Fidelity Bank Arena.

Marion made its 2025 debut Tuesday evening inside Fidelity Bank Arena, typically home to the Marion basketball teams, and the Patriots came away with a three-set victory (25-15, 25-15, and 25-12) over the Nettleton Raiders.

The Patriots continue league play Thursday evening with a road trip to Batesville, and you can watch that varsity match for free at the MPAN YouTube channel.

Marion was sharp to start on Tuesday against Nettleton, bolting out to an early 5-2 lead in the initial set, led by two kills from Kaitlyn Austin and one from Kennedy Bullins.

Nettleton fought back to tie the set at 7, but the Pats took the lead for good when Claire Brinkley set Kendall Brown for a kill, a point that sparked a 9-3 Marion spurt and forced a Raider timeout.
Senior Taylor Chamness hit Jaida Sturdivant, Bullins, and Austin for kills in that span, while Brown and Bullins also registered block points.

Marion took its first double-digit lead at 24-14 when Chamness found Austin again for a kill, and Reese Goodwin slammed the door on a 10-point opening-set victory with a kill.

Nettleton took early leads of 2-1 and 8-6 in the second stanza, but Marion took command from there when Chamness set Brown, who then served an ace, leading to a kill and a block by Sturdivant, and when Austin turned a Chamness pass into a Marion point, the Patriot lead was 11-8 as Nettleton called for time.

Leading 13-10 after a Nettleton kill, the Patriots embarked on an 8-0 run to take control of the match.

The spurt began with a pair of Raider hitting errors, followed by a kill from Abby Simmons, a Goodwin ace, and kills by Bullins and Brown for a 21-10 lead, and Marion wrapped a second straight 25-15 decision in the second set when Brinkley hit Sturdivant for a kill.

Austin tallied two kills, while Bullins came up with one, as part of a 4-0 Marion run to open the eventual decisive third set.

Marion's lead hit 8-3 following an Austin ace and kills by Bullins and Brown, and the Raiders called a timeout.

The Pats scored eight consecutive points to add on to an 8-5 lead, highlighted by four kills from Brown, a Sturdivant kill, and a Bullins block.

Leading 19-9, Marion got kills from Aynslee Coad, Bullins, Austin, back-to-back aces from Simmons, who finished with a team-high 17 digs, and when Bullins tallied her final kill of the night, Marion had won the third set by 13 points, and the match in three, straight sets.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Marion plays at Batesville in a 5A East match on Thursday evening, and you can watch for free on the Marion Patriots Activities Network YouTube channel.
The Patriots will stay busy over the weekend at the Riverside City Classic at Bartlett, Tennessee, with matches spread over Friday evening and into Saturday morning. The Riverside City Classic will not be broadcast on the Marion Patriots Activities Network.

5A EAST RESULTS FROM 9/2
Marion 3, Nettleton 0
Valley View 3, Paragould 0
Batesville 3, W. Memphis 0
Greene Co. Tech 3, Mountain Home 2
Searcy played Harding Academy in non-conference action.

5A EAST STANDINGS ON 9/3
SCHOOL CONF. RECORD
MARION 2-0
Valley View 2-0
Nettleton 1-1
Paragould 1-1
Greene Co. Tech 1-1
Batesville 1-1
Searcy 0-1
W. Memphis 0-1
Mountain Home 0-2

5A EAST MATCHES ON 9/4
Marion at Batesville
Searcy at Paragould
Nettleton at Greene Co. Tech
W. Memphis at Mountain Home