WEST MEMPHIS --- The Marion volleyball team was able to accomplish what had to be a pretty satisfying double dip on Tuesday evening. For starters, the Patriots punched their ticket to the Class 5A state tournament in Searcy with a three-set victory over their south Crittenden County rivals from West Memphis (25-17, 25-21, and 25-12) inside Lehr Arena. Marion's (18-6-1 overall, 10-0 5A East) moved one step closer to this season's 5A East conference championship by completing a season sweep of West Memphis, improving its all-time record against the Blue Devils to 36-0 since the series began in 2006. Sophomore Kennedy Bullins, who was named ScoreBookLive's High School Volleyball Player of the Week, finished with a match-high 16 kills to go along with a pair of aces, and a block. Junior Maggie Miller, who's up for this week's SBLive Player of the Week honors, paced Marion with 40 assists, 17 digs, and four aces. Junior Alexa Shinabery, sophomore Kaitlyn Austin, and freshman Kendall Brown all finished with nine kills apiece, while sophomore Abbi Simmons stacked 16 digs and served an ace. Marion can clinch the 5A East conference title and the No. 1 playoff seed with a victory Thursday night over Paragould, which defeated defending conference champion Valley View Tuesday night in five sets. That game will begin at 4:30 at 3M Transit Arena and the contest will be broadcast on MarionPatriots.com and on the MPAN YouTube channel. Miller and Bullins proved potent early on at West Memphis, teaming up four times for kills as the Pats earned an early 8-4 lead. But West Memphis rallied behind kills by Jordyn Hightower and Tyra Taylor to get within 9-8 in the opener. Marion hit the jets from there as Miller hit Austin, Bullins, and Brown once for kills, as Marion's 15-10 lead forced West Memphis to call for time. The five-point lead held until late in the first set when Brown registered a kill, Bullins and Miller teamed for a block, and when Simmons served an ace, the Pats had finished off the Blue Devils by eight points for a 1-0 lead in the match. The second set may go down as one of the more competitive frames in the history of Marion-West Memphis volleyball. The Blue Devils scored the first two points behind a Taylor kill and a Bella Hinze ace, but Marion got back into the mix, tying the set at 3 on an Austin kill. Austin delivered an ace, Bullins a block, and when Miller hit Shinabery for a kill, the Marion lead hit 8-5. But West Memphis responded from there, scoring six straight points as Chloe Fesperman notched a pair of kills and Hightower logged a block, and when the Blue Devil lead hit 11-8, Marion called for time. The Blue Devil advantage was four when Marion countered back, highlighted by three kills from Brown, the final of which tied the score at 13. The teams alternated from there, but Marion took advantage of a West Memphis hitting error, and when Miller hit Bullins for a kill and a 21-19 Marion lead, the hosts called time. Miller and Shinabery played closer down the stretch, teaming up for three of Marion's final four points in a 25-21 conquest that pushed the Blue Devils to the brink. Marion opened the third set in a flurry behind Bullins, who stacked four consecutive kills for a 4-1 lead, and when she recorded her fifth kill of the opening set, the Pats led 6-2 to force a West Memphis timeout. Following a Shinabery kill, Miller served aces on back-to-back points, Bullins tallied a block, and Miller completed the hat trick of aces, her third giving Marion a 12-2 lead. The 10-point bulge lasted until Bullins served aces on three straight points, the latter of which gave the visitors a 17-4 advantage as West Memphis burned its final timeout. But Marion wasn't to be denied as Miller connected twice with Brown and once with Austin just before Shinabery served an ace for a 20-4 Patriot lead, and Marion clinched a 13-point conquest when Miller hit Austin for the final point. WHAT'S NEXT? Marion can clinch the 12th conference title in school history on Thursday night against Paragould at 3M Transit Arena. The seventh-grade match will begin at 4:30, followed by junior high B and A matches, and the varsity should start around 6:40 p.m. The Paragould contest will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the MPAN YouTube channel. MARION STATE TOURNAMENT HISTORY Coach Lisa Beasley launched the volleyball program in the fall of 1996. The Patriots made their first state tournament appearance in 2000, advancing to the state semifinals before succumbing to eventual state champion Harrison. The Pats advanced to their first state semifinal and state final in 2006. Marion earned state championships in 2010, 2011, and 2015. 5A EAST RESULTS FROM 10/3 Marion 3, W. Memphis 0 Paragould 3, Valley View 2 Batesville 3, Greene Co. Tech 2 Nettleton 3, Searcy 0 5A EAST STANDINGS Marion 10-0 Valley View 7-3 Paragould 7-3 Batesville 5-5 Greene Co. Tech 5-5 Nettleton 3-7 Searcy 2-8 W. Memphis 1-9