By Chuck Livingston Marion School District JONESBORO --- After absorbing eight straight losses to Nettleton between the 2016-2017 and 2019-2020 seasons, the Marion Lady Patriots may have finally solved the Lady Raider mystique. Marion has now won four of the last five meetings with Nettleton after Tuesday night's 61-44 conquest at Raider Gymnasium, in which the Lady Pats never trailed. Included in the run was a district tournament victory last season at Nettleton, as well as a dramatic walk-off win last month when senior guard Jessica Robins beat the buzzer with a layup. Tuesday's victory took on a new script, as Marion (15-6, 6-2 5A East) played long ball at Nettleton (15-9, 3-5). The Lady Pats connected on six of 11 three-pointers in the first half, and making a stellar 56 percent from the floor in the game. The long-range display took shape early in the first period, when sophomore guard Ny'Asia Jackson opened the scoring with a triple before senior post Daedrianna Cail canned a shot from bonus range for a 10-7 lead with 1:41 left in the opening frame. Jackson's third triple gave the Lady Pats a 13-9 lead with 58 seconds left in the first quarter, and Marion led 16-11 entering the second quarter. Marion took its first double-digit lead of the night when a Jackson layup pushed the Lady Pats ahead 22-11 with 6:01 remaining in the second period. Nettleton got within 22-17 midway in the second stanza, but Marion responded with a 10-0 run. Half of that stretch came from junior Alyse Holliman, who converted a layup and drew a foul, but missed the free throw. Holliman collected her own miss, scored another layup, and converted the three-point play to give Marion a 32-17 lead with 1:32 left in the half. Marion's advantage reached 35-19 when Jackson beat the halftime buzzer with a triple. When Nettleton trimmed the Marion lead to 13 points early in the third period, Marion hit the Lady Raiders with one more knockout punch, this one a 12-1 sprint that gave the Lady Pats a 50-25 lead with 1:41 left in the third. Holliman scored eight points during that stretch, and Marion led 50-31 after three. Nettleton trimmed the Marion lead to 14 points three times in the fourth quarter, but the Lady Pats protected the lead by making three of five free throws down the stretch while forcing three turnovers. Jackson led all scorers with 18 points, while Holliman added 16 points and eight rebounds. Nettleton senior guard, and Murray State signee, Briley Pena scored 14 points, while McKenzie Williams hit for 12. Marion returns home to Fidelity Bank Arena Friday night to host Searcy. The girls game will tip at approximately 6 p.m., followed by the boys around 7:30. Both varsity games will be streamed on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app.