PARAGOULD --- Marion hit the road on Thursday night with two things on its mind. The first was the knowledge that a victory would essentially clinch a berth in the state tournament for the Patriots. The second being revenge after Paragould dealt Marion a September loss at Fidelity Bank Arena. Marion checked both boxes at Doc Paynter Court on Thursday evening, topping Paragould in three sets (25-19, 25-16, and 25-17) to clinch no worse than a tie for the final spot in the Class 5A state tournament in Greenbrier. One more Marion victory or another Paragould loss would punch the Pats' ticket officially. Marion's fifth straight conference road victory boosted the Pats to 15-9 overall and 8-3 in the 5A East. Marion scored the first two points of the opening set when sophomore Maggie Miller handed out assists to seniors Kiah Rucker and Madison Allison, and the Marion swelled to 9-5 when freshman Kennedy Bullins deposited a Miller pass for another kill. But Paragould fought back to tie the opening set at 14 before a pair of Rucker kills and a Paragould kill attempt went out to force a Ram timeout. The stoppage worked as Paragould ripped off four points in a row as the Rams took their first lead of the night at 18-17. But it was all Marion from there as Rucker tied the set at 18 with a block just before a Meredith Williams kill gave the Pats the lead for good. Two kills apiece from Williams and Alexa Shinabery gave Marion a six-point victory in the opener. The second set showcased some stifling Marion defense spearheaded by freshman libero Kaitlyn Austin, Miller, and Shinabery. The Patriot offense wasn't bad, either, getting three kills from Rucker, two from Bullins, and one from Shinabery, and aces from Williams and Miller to build a 10-2 advantage. Williams and Bullins recorded kills, while a Paragould hit went out of bounds, and Marion's lead reached double digits at 18-8. A Shinabery ace and a kill preceded by Miller and Rucker points gave Marion an impressive 25-16 victory to push Paragould to the brink after set No. 2. Paragould earned a pair of two-point leads early in the third set before scoring four in a row to construct a 10-6 advantage that caused a Marion timeout. Williams and Rucker sparked a Marion rally following the stoppage with each logging a pair of kills, while Bullins chipped in with a kill and an ace to get the Pats within 13-11. Rucker took center stage down the stretch at Paragould, recording four consecutive Marion points, and five out of six. The last of her points in that stretch gave Marion the lead for good at 17-16. Austin followed with an ace, while Williams logged a kill and Bullins registered a block for a 20-17 Marion advantage. Bullins racked up three kills to give Marion match point, which the Pats earned when Taylor Chamness served an ace to give the Pats a massive league victory. WHAT'S NEXT Marion returns home next week to host Greene County Tech and Searcy at 3M Transit Arena. The Greene County Tech match marks Senior Night, and seniors Kiah Rucker, Meredith Williams, Madison Allison, and Cheyenne Kight will be honored prior to the varsity game. Senior Night festivities and the Greene County Tech and Searcy games will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app. 5A EAST STANDINGS SCHOOL CONF. RECORD Valley View 11-0 Marion 8-3 Batesville 7-4 Greene County Tech 7-4 Paragould 5-6 Nettleton 3-8 West Memphis 3-8 Searcy 0-11