MARION -- Marion (11-5, 1-0 5A East) scored the last seven points Friday night at Fidelity Bank Arena to rally past Crittenden County rival West Memphis (7-4, 0-1), 46-41.
The Lady Patriots took the lead for good with 2:17 remaining in the fourth quarter when senior post Daedrianna Cail went up and under for a layup, while converting a three-point play. Cail's free throw pushed Marion ahead 42-41.
"I was impressed how we played in the third quarter," said Marion Coach Shunda Johnson. "We are still figuring out our identity right now, but that was a great stretch for us."
West Memphis forced 10 Marion turnovers in the second quarter, fueling an 18-2 run to bolt into halftime ahead 21-13.
Marion responded after the break Cail scored eight points in the third, while forward Taylor Little added four more. A Cail jumper from the free-throw line with 4:16 left in the third gave the Lady Pats their first lead (23-21) since the first quarter, but West Memphis led 30-26 after the third.
West Memphis led by as many as six points in the fourth quarter before Marion got four in a row points from Kiera Neal to drag the Lady Pats within a hoop at 39-37 with 3:34 remaining. Ny'Asia Jackson tied the game at 39-39 with a spinning layup with 3:01 in the fourth.
A pair of Clemisha Prackett free throws gave West Memphis a 41-39 lead with 2:46 left in the game, but Cail spun on the block underneath a defender, drew contact, finished the layup, and hit the free throw to give the hosts the lead.
Jackson hit two of four free throws down the stretch before Cail made a layup with 2.8 seconds remaining to set the final score.
Cail led all scorers with 16 points, in addition to five rebounds. Jackson had 8 points and 5 assists, and Neal pumped in 10 points for Marion.
Alayiah Price paced West Memphis with 14 points, while Prackett and Tucker added nine apiece.
BOYS
MARION 61, WEST MEMPHIS 36
Marion opened on a 20-1 run en route to the blowout victory over West Memphis. The 25-point victory was Marion's largest in the history of the series.
Marion (12-3 overall, 1-0 5A East) prevented West Memphis (8-5, 0-1) from hitting a field goal until the 1:09 mark of the first quarter. The Patriots forced five Blue Devil turnovers before the visitors hit from the floor.
"Team defense is what we've been preaching since the preseason," said Marion Coach David Clark. "Our guys really stepped up the last few games. The games we lost, we simply didn't perform on defense. When we defend like this, we're really tough to beat."
Junior guard Ryan Forrest sparked the opening Marion run with seven early points. His layup with 4:09 left in the opening stanza gave Marion an 11-1 lead and forced the second West Memphis timeout of the first stanza. A Donnie Cheers jumper gave the hosts a 20-1 advantage with 1:14 left in the first quarter. Marion led 24-5 after the first quarter.
West Memphis punched back in the second stanza, limiting Marion to just one field goal on eight attempts, but the Blue Devils could get no closer than 13 points before the Pats scored the final five points of the first half to lead 31-16 at the break.
Marion led 45-29 after three quarters
Junior guard Jayden Forrest paced Marion with 13 points, 7 assists and 3 rebounds. Ryan Forrest hit for 11 points and 4 boards. Senior Omareion Jefferson pumped in 12 points and 4 rebounds, while Cheers added 10 points.
West Memphis senior Keiarrias Townsend scored a team-high 13 points, while Demetrius Barrett added nine points.