Landon Miller caught the corner for strike three in the bottom of the seventh inning on Wednesday afternoon, and for the Marion Patriots, it was better late than never. In one of the more bizarre Marion-West Memphis series in recent memory, the teams began play at 4 p.m. on Tuesday afternoon, a pitcher's duel between Marion's Cohen Bumbaugh and West Memphis's Justin Boozer. Bumbaugh got the better of the Blue Devils in the lid-lifter, firing a second straight no-hitter as his offense accounted for all the game's scoring in the sixth inning to carry the Pats to a 4-0 victory. The Pats struck for five runs through the first five innings of the second contest before a lightning delay around 8:20 p.m. Tuesday evening forced the game to be completed Wednesday afternoon. Once the teams resumed at 4 p.m. on Wednesday, Marion scored five more times and six Patriot pitchers did their part to lock down a second consecutive shutout in a 10-0 victory that leaves Marion 15-6 overall and 8-2 in the 5A East ahead of two crucial conference doubleheaders left on the schedule that will ultimately decide the Pats' postseason fate. Marion muscled out 10 hits in the nightcap, led by junior utility man Carson Catt's 2-3 showing at the plate with two runs scored and an RBI. Freshman Max Molloy scored three runs in the nightcap, while seniors Trey Fleming and Parker “Buds” Nash each drove in a pair of runs. As a team, Marion drew five walks in the second game and struck out just twice. Bumbaugh continued his assault on the 5A East in the opener against the Blue Devils as the junior all-conference performer improved to 4-1 this spring in conference starts. He fired a five-inning no-hitter on April 9 at Paragould before he threw a complete-game no-no this week against West Memphis. In the second game of the conference opener at Searcy, he carried a no-hitter into the fifth inning and allowed a single bloop hit as the Pats won 12-2. On March 26, Bumbaugh struck out 11 Valley View Blazers and allowed just one hit and a single unearned run in a 1-0 defeat. Marion threatened to blow the game open in the bottom of the first of Game One against West Memphis, loading the bases against starting pitcher Ryan Crouch with just one out. Boozer relieved Crouch and promptly threw a double-play ball that helped the Blue Devils escape the jam and send the game into the second stanza. Bumbaugh and Boozer dug in from there, swapping zeroes until the bottom of the sixth when Marion sophomore Robert Hall legged out an infield single leading off the inning. Patriot senior Davis York reached on a hit by pitch with one out, but Boozer retired the next batter, summoning Catt with two on and two out. Catt dropped a textbook bunt to third base to deliver courtesy runner Fleming and Marion had finally broken through against the plucky Blue Devils. The rally continued when Brody Byrd stroked a base hit to centerfield to deliver York, Bumbaugh drove in a run with a double to left field, and when Byrd scored on a wild pitch, the Pats led 4-0 after six full frames. Bumbaugh worked a perfect seventh to close out West Memphis. He worked seven innings, struck out 13 Blue Devils, and walked just a pair. He threw 56 of 83 pitches for strikes and faced just three batters over the minimum. The nightcap didn't start as an offensive explosion in its own right. The teams battled through a scoreless first inning but the Pats got the bats going with one out in the second. Molloy took first when he was hit by a pitch, and he went from first to third on a throwing error. Byrd plated Molloy with a clutch two-out hit, and Bumbaugh delivered Byrd with a double as Marion led 2-0. The first two Patriots walked leading off the third, and catcher Landon Miller scored Nash on a groundout to extend the Marion lead to three runs. Molloy led off the fourth with a double, took third on a passed ball, and scored on a Catt sacrifice fly for a 4-0 lead, A Matthew Kearney triple turned into Marion's fifth run in the fifth inning when Fleming delivered Kearney on a groundout. That's when the lightning forced game officials to suspend the game until Wednesday afternoon. In the top of the sixth, Catt led off with a single, followed by a Byrd walk, and Solomon Flores chased in Catt with a base hit A Fleming sac fly delivered Byrd as Marion led 7-0. Davis York led off the seventh with a hit, followed by a Catt knock with one out. Junior Tyler Carey delivered a sac fly to score Molloy, and Nash capped the scoring with a two-run single. York started the second West Memphis game and fired two innings and struck out a pair of Blue Devils. The Pats then threw Catt, Jack Carter, Coleman Barnett, Nash, and Miller one inning apiece the rest of the way to cover the innings. Barnett struck out two of the three batters he faced, while Carter, Nash, and Miller recorded one punchout apiece. WHAT'S NEXT? Marion hosts Wynne on Thursday, April 18 for a varsity/junior varsity doubleheader that begins at 4:30 p.m. The Patriots will hold their Senior Night on Friday, April 19 when they host Kirby High School. Senior Night will be held at 4:30 p.m., followed by the first pitch at 5 p.m. Marion jumps back into 5A East play on Tuesday, April 23 for a big doubleheader against Batesville at home. The Wynne and Kirby games will be broadcast live on MarionPatriots.com and on the MPAN YouTube channel, while the Batesville game will be broadcast on MarionPatriots.com and on the MPAN mobile app. 5A EAST RESULTS FROM 4/16-4-17 Marion 4, W. Memphis 0 Marion 10, W. Memphis 0 Valley View 10, Greene Co. Tech 0 Valley View 10, Greene Co. Tech 0 Batesville 11, Searcy 1 Batesville 7, Searcy 1 Nettleton 9, Paragould 8 Paragould 5, Nettleton 3 5A EAST STANDINGS ON 4/18 SCHOOL CONF. RECORD Valley View 10-0 MARION 8-2 Greene Co. Tech 8-2 Batesville 6-4 Searcy 6-4 Paragould 1-9 Nettleton 1-9 W. Memphis 0-10 5A EAST SERIES ON 4/23 Batesville at Marion Searcy at Greene Co. Tech Valley View at Paragould W. Memphis at Nettleton