Abbi Simmons sprinted to her left and handled a well-hit Greene County Tech kill before sending a nearly perfect pass to Maggie Miller. Marion's hit was sent back over the net, but Simmons tracked it down again, this time running to her right. On the third return, Marion's digs leader for 2023 hawked down another hit near the back line, and eventually, the Pats cashed in the effort with a point. Marion has made headlines this fall for being a free-swinging, hard-hitting outfit en route to an 11-4 overall record with a 5-0 record in the 5A East, but Simmons and the Patriot defense have made their mark, as well. And Thursday night's match against second-place Greene County Tech may go down as the Marion defense's magnum opus. The Pats topped the Golden Eagles in straight sets (25-18, 25-16, and 25-16), amassing 69 digs, with Simmons leading the way with 21, while Miller tallied 13, and Alexa Shinabery finished with 11. The defensive effort didn't stop there, as the Pats stacked nine blocks as a team, with freshman Kendall Brown recording four, Kaitlyn Austin finished with a pair, and Reese Goodwin, Kennedy Bullins, and Shinabery recording one apiece. It amounted to a giddy head coach in Lisa Beasley. “Overall, probably the best our serve-receive has been this year,” said Beasley. “It felt like we got to more balls than usual when Tech hit. Our middles were excellent at getting to the net and then getting away from it and giving themselves a chance. I couldn't be much more pleased after this one.” Brown recorded a team-high 10 kills against Tech, while Bullins recorded nine, while Austin and Shinabery logged five apiece. Miller served two aces, while Simmons and Taylor Chamness each served one. Miller handed out a match-high 26 assists against Tech, while Simmons, Goodwin, and Chamness dished two apiece. The teams split the first eight points of the opening set, and Marion took the lead when Tech committed a net violation, sent a ball out of bounds, and hit a Bullins kill four times and the hosts led 7-4. The Eagles rallied to tie the set, but Marion surged ahead for good with six straight points, highlighted by a kill and a block each from Brown and Bullins, a Simmons ace, and an error. The Eagles trimmed the Marion lead to three points on three occasions in the opener, but Marion closed out the visitors with kills Alexa Shinabery and Brown, and a Chamness ace for a seven-point conquest. Marion hit the jets early in the second set, scoring the first five points, including two kills by Austin, one from Shinabery, and a Miller ace. The Eagles got within three points (18-15) later in the second stanza when Miyah Butler and Brooklyn Bowdler registered two kills apiece during a span of six Tech points in seven tries, but Marion got three blocks down the stretch from Brown, and two kills from Austin to ease to a nine-point victory in the second frame. "Those were two of our more consistent sets of the year so far," said Beasley. "As far as doing the right thing, nailing our assignments, and all that stuff, we were pretty spot on in the first two. I liked that we got a lead and built on it because that's something we haven't always done." Tech took an early 4-2 lead in the third set, but Marion responded quickly behind Brown, who came up with two kills and a block for three straight Patriot points, the latter of which gave the hosts a 9-5 lead that became 13-5 after Goodwin, Austin, Miller, and Bullins tallied kills of their own. Marion led by as many as nine points on three occasions in the third set, and Marion again pulled away late as Miller handed out assists to Chamness, Brown, Bullins, and Shinabery. The Patriots, who have no seniors on their roster, are now the last unbeaten team in 5A East play. "I've been telling our team that we have a big target on our backs, and we must keep pushing," said Beasley. "I've been really pleased with the attitude and maturity of these girls and hope they can keep it going." WHAT'S NEXT? Marion hosts Searcy on Tuesday, September 19 for a JV/varsity doubleheader that begins at 4:30 p.m. At 3M Transit Arena. Marion travels on Thursday, September 21 to Batesville, and each contest will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the Marion Patriots Activities Network YouTube channel. RANKINGS RUNDOWN Marion moved up this week to No. 7 in ScoreBookLive.com's weekly Top 25 rankings. The only Class 5A team ranked higher than the Patriots is 5A EAST RESULTS FROM 9/14 Marion 3, Greene Co. Tech 0 Valley View 3, W. Memphis 1 Batesville 3, Searcy 1 Paragould 3, Nettleton 1 5A EAST STANDINGS AS OF 9/15 Marion 5-0 Valley View 4-1 Greene Co. Tech 3-2 Batesville 3-2 Paragould 3-2 Nettleton 2-3 Searcy 1-4 W. Memphis 0-5