Marion girls rally to earn first-round playoff victory

Patriots beat Russelville in dramatic fashion to advance in State Tournament

By Chuck Livingston

Marion School District

PINE BLUFF — Part of the reason the Marion Lady Patriots have become a fixture deep in the state tournament is because they don’t blink under any circumstance.

That resiliency was on display again on Wednesday night at the Pine Bluff Convention Center during the opening round of the Class 5A state tournament.

Marion twice trailed by eight points in the first half, but the Lady Pats countered and slugged back by any means necessary.

The end result was a dramatic 46-44 victory over Russellville (22-9 overall) that moved Marion (13-16) into the quarterfinals for the sixth time in seven seasons, and the third year in a row.

“We’ll take them any way we can get them at this time of the year,” said Marion coach Shunda Johnson. “Tonight, I was especially proud of how we shot free throws, especially late. I think that’s how we were able to get by this one.”

Marion connected on 11 of its 18 free throws against Russellville, including eight of 11 in the second half. Seniors Kiera Neal and Falencia Selvy combined to make seven of their 10 charities against the Lady Cyclones.

Senior Alyse Holliman paced the Lady Pats with a game-high 15 points and five rebounds, while Aya Johnson added eight points with four boards, and Neal checked in with seven points and three caroms.

Junior point guard Ny’Asia Jackson dished out a teamhigh five assists while playing all 32 minutes.

Russellville guard Brenna Burk led the Lady Cyclones with 11 points, while Taleigha Ealy and Zariyah Willis finished with eight points apiece.

The victory garnered a certain amount of revenge for Marion, which lost in November at Russellville 54-46 in overtime. The Lady Pats now enjoy a 3-2 lead in the all-time series against Russellville, with all three victories coming in the state tournament (2017, 2021, and 2023).

“All week we have known that losing isn’t an option this week,” said Johnson.

“We hated losing a nonconference game (to Russellville), but our team really rallied around the idea of winning when it

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matters the most.”

Marion’s tenth victory in 12 tries this season felt unlikely early on as the Lady Cyclones fashioned a pair of eight-point leads in the first quarter before a Johnson layup got Marion within 14-8 after eight minutes. The Johnson hoop doubled as the beginning of a Marion run that continued into the second quarter when Holliman scored in the paint, followed by another Johnson layup that tied the game. When Brianna Dyson scored on the block, Marion had its first lead at 14-12 with 5:50 left in the first half.

However, Russellville finished the frame on a 7-2 run to claim a 21-19 lead at the break.

“Our smaller group that we went to late in the first quarter actually rebounded the ball better than our bigger group,” said the coach.

“They’re active, they’re in position, and I thought that was crucial to getting back into it.”

Marion outrebounded Russellville 29-27 for the game.

Dyson gave Marion the lead again early in the third when she made a threepointer, which preceded a run of seven consecutive Holliman points that gave the Lady Pats a 30-26 advantage. Marion claimed a 35-32 lead after three quarters when senior Aaliyah Taylor hit from long range with 24.1 seconds left in the third.

Russellville took the lead back with 4:41 left in regulation when Burk hit a layup, but that kicked off Marion’s clutch foul shooting as Neal made a pair to push the Lady Pats back in front before hitting a layup of her own, and a Holliman bucket gave Marion a 4338 lead with 59.4 left in regulation.

Burk responded with four straight Russellville points though, to work within 4342 with 17.9 ticks left on the clock.

That’s when Selvy hit the front half of a one-and-one, before Russellville’s Dru Robinson missed the front end of her own and Marion led 44-42 with 10.7 seconds left.

Dyson hit both ends of a one-and-one to give Marion a 46-42 bulge with 9.5 seconds left.

What’s Next?

Marion plays Sylvan Hills (18-6 overall) at 1:00 p.m. on Friday, March 3 at the Pine Bluff Convention Center. Sylvan Hills, the No. 4 seed from the 5A Central, pulled off one of the surprises at the state tournament so far this season when the Lady Bears bested 5A South champion Benton 53-46 on Tuesday.

Every Marion game at the Class 5A state tournament will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app.

5A State Tournament Results & Schedule

Vilonia 59, Hot Springs Lakeside 29 Siloam Springs 40, Paragould 39 Vilonia-Siloam Springs, 7 p.m. on March 2 Sylvan Hills 53, Benton 46 Marion 46, Russellville 44 Sylvan Hills-Marion, 1 p.m. on March 3 W. Memphis 57, Mountain Home 39 Sheridan-LR Christian 1 p.m. on March 2 Greenwood 57, Nettleton 49 LR Parkview-El Dorado 4 p.m. on March 2