Marion Athletics -

SHERWOOD --- For most of last Friday night's game at 6A East co-champion Sylvan Hills, Marion looked like a team bound for the state semifinals.

The Patriots led by double-digits throughout the first half, by four points at halftime, 11 points in the third, and five points to open the fourth quarter.

Instead, Sylvan Hills got its explosive offense on track, scored the first 14 points of the fourth quarter, and held off a late Patriot rally for a dramatic 34-32 victory that catapults the Bears into the final four, while the Patriots head home.

Marion's 2025 campaign ends with a 7-5 overall record, including the school's fifth appearance in the state quarterfinals in the past eight seasons.

Sylvan Hills (10-1 overall) will host Shiloh Christian (9-2) on Friday night, with the winner advancing to play the winner of the Benton (9-2) and Greenwood (11-0) contest.

The Class 6A state final is scheduled for 6:30 p.m., Saturday, December 6, at Little Rock's War Memorial Stadium.

Marion scored the first 12 points of the quarterfinal tilt on Friday when Jeremiah Dent scored from 2 yards out for a 6-0 lead with 6:44 left in the first quarter, followed by a Rico Ward 74-yard scoring sprint late in the quarter as the Pats led 12-0 after one frame.

Sylvan Hills dented the scoreboard when Hampton found Blakely for a 30-yard score with 7:26 left in the first half, and the extra point got the Bears within 12-7.

Kajeris Hill returned a Sylvan Hills punt 56 yards for a touchdown that gave Marion an 18-7 lead with 2:28 left in the first half.

Marion forced a Sylvan Hills punt, and Zayden Walker hit Dent for a 13-yard completion across midfield, but the Bears poked the ball free and recovered a fumble.

The hosts got within 18-14 at halftime when Hampton hit E.J. Duckery for a 9-yard TD with six seconds left in the first half.

Dent ran 54 yards to paydirt on the second play of the third quarter to give the Pats a 25-14 bulge.

Sylvan Hills got within 25-20 with 3:09 left in the third when Howell ran 47 yards for a score, and that tally held until the end of the third.

Sylvan Hills took its first lead of the game on a 29-yard touchdown throw from quarterback Tyler Hampton to Tyler Blakely with 10:14 left in the contest. An Isaiah Howell two-point conversation staked the Bears to a 28-25 lead.

Marion marched from its own 35-yard line on the ensuing possession to the Sylvan Hills 1-yard line, but the Bear defense stiffened and forced a turnover on downs with 5:56 left in the game.

Sylvan Hills scored 3 plays later when Hampton hit Blakely on a slant on third and 8, and he electrified the crowd by outrunning the Patriots to the end zone for a 91-yard touchdown that gave the Bears a 34-25 lead with 4:40 left to play.

Marion responded quickly on the following drive, scoring in six plays and hitting paydirt on a 5-yard Rico Ward TD run to get the visitors within 34-32 with 3:29 left on the clock.

From there, Sylvan Hills converted a third-and-7 before facing fourth-and-22 with 15 seconds left when Hampton hit Parham on a jump ball that went for 23 yards, which allowed the Bears to drain the clock.

CLASS 6A PLAYOFF RESULTS FROM 11/21
Sylvan Hills 34, Marion 32
Shiloh Christian 24, El Dorado 21
Benton 63, Mountain Home 49
Greenwood 59, Jonesboro 21

CLASS 6A PLAYOFF SEMIFINALS ON 11/28
Shiloh Christian at Sylvan Hills
Benton at Greenwood