MARION AND SEARCY --- This week may go down as the busiest week in the history of Marion volleyball, what with three conference matches scheduled, and then a highly competitive tournament over the weekend at Hot Springs Lakeside.
If the first two matches are any indicator, the Patriots are going to be just fine.
Marion hosted some version of Monday Night Madness on the first day of the week, snapping Mountain Home's four-game conference winning streak with a three-set conquest (25-12, 25-11, and 25-15) inside 3M Transit Arena.
Tuesday night saw the Pats take their show on the road, where they dispatched the Searcy Lions in straight sets (25-13, 25-15, and 25-13) at Lion Arena.
First-place Marion (14-2 overall, 8-0 5A East) hosts Greene County Tech Thursday evening at Fidelity Bank Arena to officially begin the second run through conference play in 2025.
Marion excelled in its serve-receive game against Mountain Home Monday evening, serving nine aces across three sets, led by three from senior all-conference libero Abby Simmons, two apiece from Reese Goodwin and Kendall Brown, and one apiece from Taylor Chamness and Kennedy Bullins.
After Mountain Home opened the action in the first set with a kill, Marion responded with a 6-0 run, led by a block point from Bullins, as well as kills by Bullins, Jaida Sturdivant, and Kaitlyn Austin.
Back-to-back kills from Austin and Bullins gave Marion an 11-5 lead and forced the first Mountain Home timeout of the evening.
A Brown kill preceded an Austin kill, and when Brown served an ace for a 16-7 advantage, the Bombers called their second timeout of the evening.
A Goodwin kill gave Marion its first double-digit lead of the night at 17-7, and Marion closed out the Bombers with a Brown kill, a Bullins ace, and a Sturdivant kill.
Marion opened set No. 2 with a 5-0 run, headlined by kills from Bullins, Austin, Marlee Williams, and a Goodwin ace.
The Patriot run hit 12-5 with a Sturdivant block as the Bombers called time.
Back-to-back kills from Goodwin gave Marion its first double-digit lead at 16-6, and kills from Austin and Williams helped Marion close out a 14-point victory in the second set.
Mountain Home stormed out to an 8-4 lead in the third set, but Marion methodically marched back as Brown stacked a pair of kills, while Williams logged one to tie the set at 8 apiece.
The Patriot run continued as Brown came up with a kill, Sturdivant stuffed a Bomber hit at the net for a point, and then slammed a kill of her own for a 12-9 lead that forced a Mountain Home timeout.
Simmons, Brown, and Goodwin served aces later on in the third set, and a Bullins kill gave Marion a double-digit lead at 23-13, and Brown grounded the Bombers with a kill to clinch a 10-point victory in set No. 3, and a three-set victory.
Tuesday night at Searcy, Marion encountered a Lion outfit that needed a big win to catapult itself back into the state playoff picture.
Searcy scored the first two points of the first set, and the teams went on to split the first six points before Marion got a kill from Brown, an ace from Austin, and three kills in a row from Brown, Goodwin, and Sturdivant for a 10-5 advantage that forced a Searcy timeout.
Marion then scored five of six points, highlighted by kills from Williams, Brown, and Austin, the latter giving the Pats an 18-11 lead as Searcy called time.
The visitors took their first double-digit lead at 22-12 on a Brown kill, and then the Mississippi State commit capped off a strong opening set victory with another kill.
Marion was faster out of the gates in the second set, bolting to a 7-2 lead on the strength of kills by Bullins, Goodwin, Austin, and Brown.
Consecutive Searcy hitting errors gave Marion a 12-5 lead as the Lions called for time.
Bullins, Austin, and Sturdivant came up with kills during a 5-0 stretch for Marion for a 19-10 lead, and Brown closed Searcy down again with kills for the last two points of the set as Marion won by 10.
Searcy and Marion split the first 10 points of the third set, but the Patriots came up with a 4-0 run, sparked by a Brown block, a Williams kill, and a Bullins ace, for a 9-5 lead, and Searcy burned a timeout.
Three Brown kills following the stoppage gave Marion a 12-6 lead, and the Lions used their second and final timeout to stop the Marion run.
Aces from Annabelle White, Claire Brinkley, and Simmons fed the Marion run, and the Pats stormed ahead by 10 points at 21-11 following a Bullins kill, and Brown came up with the final point of the set for a 12-point Marion victory.
Brown stacked 17 kills at Searcy, while Bullins finished with eight, and Austin had five. Austin led the way with 13 digs, while Simmons finished with 12, and Brown racked up 11. Chamness and Brinkley each logged a team-high 16 assists.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Marion hosts Greene County Tech on Thursday afternoon at Fidelity Bank Arena, with the evening beginning at 4:30 p.m. You can watch the Greene County Tech varsity match for free on the MPAN YouTube channel.
5A EAST RESULTS FROM 9/23
Marion 3, Searcy 0
Valley View 3, Greene Co. Tech 0
Mountain Home 3, Nettleton 2
Paragould 3, W. Memphis 0
Batesville did not play a conference match.
5A EAST STANDINGS ON 9/24
SCHOOL CONF. RECORD
MARION 8-0
Valley View 6-2
Greene Co. Tech 5-3
Mountain Home 5-3
Paragould 5-3
Batesville 4-4
Nettleton 2-6
Searcy 1-7
W. Memphis 0-8
The top four teams make the state tournament October 27-29 in Marion.
5A EAST MATCHES ON 9/25
Greene Co. Tech at Marion
Batesville at Valley View
Paragould at Mountain Home
Nettleton at Searcy
W. Memphis does not play a conference match