Using tenacious defense and precision shooting, Marissa-Coulterville put together its best performance of the season to roll past Saxony Lutheran 53-27 Thursday night in the Chester Invitational semifinals.

“This was the best defense we have played all year,” said Marissa-Coulterville coach Dirk Miller. “We had no let up and we played tight on their shooters the entire game. This was the first team we have played all year, that we were bigger than and that always helps. Tonight we were able to hit shots early and get off to a quick start. We have been struggling shooting the ball this season and been relying too much on second chance opportunities. Tonight, we looked relaxed and didn’t force a lot.”

The Meteors came out on fire to start the game making six of their first seven shots to take a 13-5 lead.

Meanwhile, the Saxony Lutheran offense couldn’t get anything going against the tough Marissa-Coulterville defense as the team had eight turnovers in the opening quarter and trailed 18-7 at the end of the period.

Cody Mahan had five points for the Meteors in the first, while teammate Mike Lloyd added four. Marissa-Coulterville went 8-of-11 from the floor in the first quarter for the 11-point lead.

Saxony opened the second quarter with a 6-0 run to cut the deficit to five points, 18-13, but Marissa-Coulterville responded by closing out the half with a 19-0 run sparked by eight points from Casey Pitchford for a 37-14 halftime lead.

“Casey has had a solid two games in this tournament,” said Miller. “He is just a workhorse and his play has been a huge lift for us. For us to be successful he has to be a key part of the team.”

The Meteors were 8-of-12 from the field in the second quarter, while Saxony was just 2-of-9.

Marissa-Coulterville’s dominance continued in the third quarter outscoring Saxony 15-7 for a commanding 52-21 lead heading into the fourth.

The Meteors made 6-of-9 shots in the period as Joey Martin led the offense with eight points in the frame.

Saxony continued to struggle offensively going 2-of-10 from the floor in the quarter with six turnovers.

In the abbreviated fourth quarter due to the continuous clock rule, Saxony outscored Marissa-Coulterville 6-1 as the Meteors coasted to the 26-point win.

Martin finished with 12 points to lead the Meteors, while Mahan and Pitchford each had 10 and Lloyd added eight in the win.

With the victory, Marissa-Coulterville advanced to the tournament championship to take on Cahokia Conference rival New Athens, which topped Valle Catholic of Ste. Genevieve 50-32 in the other Thursday semifinal game.

Saturday night’s main event will be the third meeting this year between the two rivals with New Athens winning the previous two games.

“Against New Athens, we have to stop their three big guns, Vince Kiefer, Tyler Womack and Cody Gaubatz,” said Miller. “We can’t stop attacking, even if we have the lead, that is what cost us in the second game against them. We have to look to score in transition and play solid defense the entire game.”