Part Two of a look back at Marion Volleyball

Part Two of a look back at Marion Volleyball Lady Pats become a powerhouse

Sports Editor

Note: This is the second part of an interview with Marion head volleyball coach Lisa Beasley. The first part can be found in the Monday, August 1 edition of The Evening Times.

Back to back

Following the Benton loss, it’s possible that some people wondered if the Lady Pats would ever breakthrough and win the school’s first state title, but one of those people was not 2012 Marion graduate Harley Strayhorn.

Strayhorn would go on to have a decorated career at Williams Baptist College, playing volleyball for four years for the Lady Eagles, but Beasley will probably always remember a simple statement that Strayhorn made just a few weeks after the 2009 state final.

“The very first day of offseason after that loss, Harley walks up to me as I’m sitting here making my plans or whatever and she looks at me and says, ‘Coach, we’re gonna win state next year,’” recalls Beasley. “So, I say, ‘Okay, what about the next two years? You’re just a junior this year,’ and she says ‘Yeah, we’ll win the next two years.’” The 2010 and 2011 seasons witnessed a run that only the rapper Drake could appreciate. Marion posted consecutive records of 33-3 and 25-4 overall, while winning all 28 conference games to capture consecutive league titles.

Most importantly, Marion took down its first state title in Bentonville, beating Van Buren in four sets (25-17, 20-25, 25-20 and 25-20) to bring the gold home.

“Such a fun, fun year,” says Beasley. “It was a great season. At Bentonville, we had a huge crowd, everyone is cheering. When we get home, there are people waiting on us at the gym to greet us. Just to get to see them experience was the best.”

Karla-Ann Norton was the state tournament MVP in 2010.

“It was a dream season and as a coach and an athlete, I had never been able to be a part of a state championship, and to do it here at Marion where I started the program, that group made my dreams come true,” Beasley says.

If 2010 was a dream season, then 2011 was a pretty good encore. Marion won the Southaven Tournament, a second straight league title and rolled to its third straight state final in Conway.

Once there, the Lady Pats were matched up with league rival Mountain Home, a team that they had already beaten twice in the regular season.

While the stakes were higher for the third game, the result was the same. Marion repeated its title feat by dropping the Lady Bombers for a second straight state title in straight sets (25-16, 25-13 and 2725).

“I felt like we’d make a run (before 2011),” says Beasley. “We lost four of our key players from the previous year, so I knew it’d be a struggle from that perspective, but about midway through the year, we beat someone that nobody thought that we could beat and coach (Shayla) Williams and I looked at each other and said ‘Hey, we may be able to do this.’” After her decorated career at Marion, but maybe not because of her superior prognostication skills, Strayhorn was named the 2011 state tournament Most Valuable Player.

It takes a village Marion won its third state title in 2015, sweeping Greenwood in straight sets, but perhaps more than games, Beasley is fond of the experiences that she’s had with people from the community.

“So many people made this possible, just because of their support and their belief in what we were doing here,” says the coach. “A lady like Helen Compton, who was really my Marion mom and she did everything for me when I first got here. Nancy Hardy was my first hug at Marion, she saw me wandering in the halls one day and reached out to me. Susie McFalls was like another mom of mine. Barbara and Debbie Reginelli, they’re still helping me out and I probably couldn’t have done any of this without them. Mrs. Bogart was great to me. Sherri Luttrell had my back through everything and was a great friend. My coaching staff has been a true blessing. I can’t say enough about the job that Shayla Williams and Lucy Sislo do with the kids and do for me. I’m just very grateful for everything through the years and don’t know how I’ll ever repay them.”

After initially deciding that she would stay at Marion until the Lady Pats won a state title, Beasley’s expectations have changed a bit over the past few years, due in no small part to the role that the people have played in her life in Crittenden County.

“I remember one coach asking me if I was just going to stay at Marion forever or if I’m going to just retire at Marion,” Beasley says. “Well, that’s what you did. You coached there for 40 years, so why not? If I’m ever here and I think that I can’t help, or I’m shortchanging the kids, then I’d probably leave, but if I feel like I’m making an impact, then that’s enough for me.” Marion opens its 2016 season with a senior high jamboree at home on August 18 at 5:30 p.m. The Lady Pats open regular-season play on August 23 at Greene County Tech before opening its home schedule on August 25 against Wynne.

Note: This was the first of a series of three stories about Marion volleyball that will run this week.

By Chuck Livingston