PARAGOULD -- Marion's girls allowed three field goals combined in the second and third quarters Tuesday night to erase two 13-point second-quarter deficits to earn a 53-40 victory at Doc Paynter Court.
Marion senior guard Aaliyah Taylor paced the Lady Patriots (6-16, 3-3 5A-East) with 19 points, including nine in the second quarter. Brianna Dyson had 10 points and three assists, while Kiera Neal added eight points.
Paragould (13-6, 4-2) got 17 points and eight rebounds from Keimauri Brown and 13 points from Hadlee Defries.
The Lady Rams had an 11-4 run in the first quarter, sparked by nine points from Brown and Paragould led 11-6.
Paragould took its first double-digit lead on the final play of the first quarter when Defries' three-pointer beat the buzzer and the Lady Rams led 19-8 to start the second quarter.
The Lady Rams pushed their lead to 21-8 when Brown made two free throws, but that's when Marion pushed back.
Marion immediately took off on a 12-2 run, including eight straight from Taylor off the bench. The Lady Pats got within 23-20 with 2:18 remaining in the first half on a Taylor three-pointer. Paragould led 26-22 at halftime.
Paragould enjoyed a 31-29 lead following a Defries runner with 1:04 left in the third quarter, but Taylor gave Marion its first lead (32-31) since 2-0 when she converted a three-point play. The Lady Patriots led 37-31 after three quarters following a layup from Dyson and a Kiera Neal three-pointer.
Marion led 41-36 midway through the fourth quarter when Brown scored six straight points to get Paragould within 43-40. But the Lady Pats did not allow the Lady Rams to score over the final 3:01.
Dyson scored the next four points before an Alyse Holliman layup, and Ny'Asia Jackson scored the game's final four points to clinch the final.
BOYS
MARION 63, PARAGOULD 30
Marion (17-6, 6-0 5A-East) led Paragould (8-14, 2-4) 20-15 at halftime, but the Patriots held the Rams to six second-half field goals to pull away for a victory.
Sophomore guard Lyndell Buckingham led Marion with a game-high 19 points and six assists. Senior guard Martavious Davis added 13 points, while David Brewer added seven. Gavin Hall paced Paragould with 11 points, and Jesse Beliew chipped in with nine.
The Patriots hit 10 three-pointers on 28 attempts.