There was no rest for the weary last weekend as the 2026 Marion volleyball team officially opened their campaign with three non-conference matches on the first four days of the season.
Then on Friday, Marion took its talents across the bridge to participate in the 2026 River City Classic in Bartlett, Tennessee.
Just like in 2025, Marion finished as the tournament runners-up in Bartlett, finishing 5-1 in the hyper-competitive bracket, losing only to Briarcrest Christian in the final.
The Patriots improved to 8-1 overall in 2026 after beating St. Mary's Episcopal in three sets (23-25, 25-13, 15-8), St. Benedict at Auburndale in two sets (25-22, 25-11), Evangelical Christian in two sets (25-17, 25-20), Houston High School in two (25-22, 25-21), and host school Bartlett in three sets before falling to Briarcrest.
Senior all-state performer and Alabama A&M commit Kendall Brown paced Marion with 10 kills against St. Mary's, while senior Northwest Mississippi commit and all-conference performer Marlee Williams checked in with nine kills, and Izzy Fenter tallied four kills. Six Patriots served two aces or more against St. Mary's, led by Claire Brinkley's five aces, four from Brown, and three by Alli “Gator” Sharp. Brown and Sharp led the way with nine digs apiece, while Brinkley was tops with 21 assists.
Williams recorded a team-high eight kills against St. Benedict at Auburndale, while Taylor “Tot” Ruffin and Bren Sutton finished with four apiece. Brown served the only ace for Marion in that match, and she and Brinkley led the way with four digs apiece, while Brinkley paced the Pats with 18 assists against SBAA.
Ruffin led Marion with nine kills against Evangelical Christian, while Brown and Sutton stacked six apiece. Brinkley paced the Pats with two aces, while Annabelle White, Brown, Alli Sharp and Mallorie Sharp served one apiece. Brinkley (10) and Brown (nine) led the way in digs, and Brinkley also topped the chart with 19 assists.
Brown handed Houston 13 kills, and Sutton racked up five. Williams served three aces and Alli Sharp finished with a pair. Brinkley led Marion in digs (13) and assists (19), while White handled seven digs with three assists.
In the tournament final, Brown (11), Williams (7) and Sutton (7) led Marion in kills. White and Reese Jackson served two aces apiece. White logged a team-high eight digs, while Fenter and Brinkley handled six apiece, and Brinkley led Marion with 25 assists.
WHAT'S NEXT?
Marion jumps back into 5A East play on Tuesday, September 1, with a trip to West Memphis. The evening begins at 4:30 p.m., with varsity starting around 7 p.m. If you can not make the trip to West Memphis, you can watch the match for free on the Marion Patriots Activities Network.
5A EAST RESULTS FROM 8/27
Marion 3, Valley View 1
Paragould 3, W. Memphis 0
Beebe 3, Nettleton 1
Greene Co. Tech 3, Batesville 1
5A EAST STANDINGS ON 8/28
TEAM CONF. RECORD
Marion 1-0
Beebe 1-0
Paragould 1-0
Greene Co. Tech 1-0
Searcy 0-0
Valley View 0-1
Nettleton 0-1
Batesville 0-1
W. Memphis 0-1
Top four teams qualify for state tournament at Farmington.
5A EAST MATCHES ON 9/1
Marion at W. Memphis
Paragould at Greene Co. Tech
Nettleton at Batesville
Valley View at Searcy
Lonoke at Beebe (non-conference)