SHERIDAN --- David Clark could barely process his thoughts immediately following his Marion Patriots' 49-46 quarterfinal victory over Russellville at Yellowjacket Arena on Thursday night. Playing for the second day in a row, and against a conference champion, no less, Clark's Patriots (25-7 overall) made enough plays down the stretch to advance to the state semifinals for the third time in his four seasons as head coach. "Survive and advance, coaches have said it for years," said Clark. "We didn't do everything exactly right all the time, but we survived and advanced." Marion held off Russellville (20-5) by shooting 53 percent from the field (17 of 32), outrebounding the Cyclones 25-17 and limiting Russellville to 36 percent shooting. The Patriots limited high-flying Russellville guard Donyae Mae to 19 points after he hit for 28 in the Cyclones' opening-round victory. Marion did not allow a Russellville field goal for more than 11 minutes of game time. "I give our defense a B-plus on the whole," said Clark. "We played good team defense and shut them down until the end, when they started getting some straight-line layups." Marion junior guard Ryan Forrest hit for a game-high 20 points, while logging seven rebounds and three assists. Freshman Terrion Burgess hit for nine points, while juniors Donnie Cheers and Jayden Forrest hit for five points apiece. The Patriots closed the first quarter on a 9-2 run to earn a 15-9 lead after eight minutes. Ryan Forrest fueled the run with seven points during that stretch, including a pair of mid-range jumpers, and a three-point play on an aggressive drive to the basket. Ryan Forrest went back to work in the second quarter, when he scored Marion's first five points, giving the Pats a 20-11 lead with 2:40 left in the second stanza, and the Pats enjoyed a 20-13 halftime bulge. Grayson Sims' runner at the 6:22 mark of the third quarter marked Russellville's first field goal since Maye hit a layup with 1:16 remaining in the first quarter. Jayden Forrest gave Marion its first double-digit lead (25-15) of the night with 4:50 left in the third period, when he drew a foul while making a runner and converting a three-point play. A Kayden Nesbitt free throw gave the Pats a 34-23 lead after three quarters. Russellville hit Marion with an 8-2 run to open the fourth quarter, making all six free throws during that stretch to work within 36-31 with 6:06 left in regulation. The Cyclones got as close as two points at 39-37 when Maye registered a stickback with 4:33 remaining, and Marion kept Russellville close by making just nine of 18 free throws in the final frame. Marion plays in the semifinals on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. against the winner of the Little Rock Parkview-Lake Hamilton game. That game will be streamed live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app.