PARAGOULD --- Nothing has come easy this season for the Marion Lady Patriots. So obviously, Friday night's contest at Greene County Tech was no different. The Lady Eagles scrapped in the first half, playing well enough to claim a one-point lead heading to the break in a game that Marion desperately needed to keep pace in its chase for the state tournament. But, the Lady Pats dominated the second half, outscoring the hosts by 19 points after the break, in Friday night's 51-33 victory over Greene County Tech at Eagle Arena. An aggressive Marion defense forced 10 Tech turnovers after the break and limited the Lady Eagles to just 4-of-25 shooting in the second half. Marion's victory completes a season sweep of Tech, giving the Lady Pats the first tiebreaker should the teams end the season with the same league mark. The Lady Patriots moved to within one victory or one loss apiece by Greene County Tech and Searcy of clinching a state tournament berth for the ninth time in 10 seasons under Coach Shunda Johnson. Marion owns the head-to-head tiebreaker over Tech by virtue of its sweep of the Lady Eagles, but Searcy owns the tiebreaker over Marion after sweeping the Lady Pats. Senior Alyse Holliman paced Marion (10-13 overall, 7-5 5A East) with 14 points and 7 rebounds, while senior Aya Johnson and junior Ny'Asia Jackson chipped in with 9 points apiece. Miyah Butler and Ava Carter led Tech (18-10, 5-7) with 8 points apiece while Jacey Edrington added 6. Tech made eight of its nine free-throw attempts in the first quarter to take a 12-7 lead after 8 minutes. Marion took its first lead (18-17) of the game when Brianna Dyson banked home a three-pointer with 3:16 left in the second stanza, but Butler scored the last 3 points of the half to help Tech take a 24-23 lead to the lockers. An Aaliyah Taylor jump shot sparked the third-period scoring and gave Marion the lead for good with 7:41 left in the frame. Taylor's bucket kicked off a 13-4 run that helped Marion claim a 38-30 lead after three quarters. Holliman scored Marion's first 6 points of the fourth period as the visitors' lead touched double digits for the first time (42-32) with 5:41 remaining. From there, Johnson hit a pair of free throws, while Jordan Johnson and Holliman scored layups to cap the scoring. WHAT'S NEXT? Marion hosts Paragould (17-6 overall, 9-2 5A East) tonight for Senior Night at Fidelity Bank Arena. Marion downed Paragould in January, and would stay alive for a No. 2 playoff seed should the Lady Patriots cram the Rams again. The girls game will tip around 6 p.m., followed by Senior Night festivities for cheer, girls basketball, and boys hoops. The boys game against Paragould will begin around 7:30. The varsity games and Senior Night festivities will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network mobile app. 5A EAST RESULTS FROM FEBRUARY 17 Marion 51, Greene County Tech 33 Searcy 46, Valley View 31 (game played on February 20) W. Memphis 61, Paragould 44 Nettleton 65, Batesville 49 5A EAST STANDINGS AS OF FEBRUARY 21 SCHOOL CONF. RECORD (Top 4 teams make playoffs) W. Memphis 11-0*+ Paragould 9-2* Marion 7-5 Nettleton 7-5 Greene County Tech 5-7 Searcy 5-7 Valley View 3-9 Batesville 1-11 *clinched playoff berth +clinched conference title