BABBACOMBE are still setting the pace at the top of the C Division East after winning by 45 runs at Dartington & Totnes.
Their lead is 18 points with a tricky encounter with Chagford coming up.
If second-placed Ashburton beat bottom side Plymouth CS&R, Babbacombe could see their lead trimmed substantially if they slip up.
Jake Hands (64) top scored for Babbacombe in their total of 187 all out in difficult conditions at Foxhole.
“We lost the toss and had to bat on a lively, green wicket,” said Babbacombe captain Steve Broad.
“The first run was a wide in the fifth over.
“Hand batted well in difficult conditions and against very good early bowling by Bertus Loots (3-16)
“There were contributions by the middle order (Dean Peal 26), but it was disappointing none of us kicked on.”
Loots (25), Elliott Miller (21) and skipper Harold Stevenson (20) were Darts’ main scorers in a total of 142 all out.
“We bowled excellently from the start,” said Broad.
“Tim Goodwin (4-15) and Andy McVeigh (4-42) were outstanding and Peall was very lively.”
ASHBURTON rediscovered their winning touch with a crushing eight-wicket win over Shaldon.
Back-to-back defeats by South Devon and Babbacombe had dented Ashes’ promotion aspirations.
Beating Shaldon put Ashes back to second, but in a division with only one promotion place the 18-point gap behind leaders Babbacombe needs some attention.
Shaldon skipper Mark Couch won the toss and batted – a decision he may have questioned after his side were bowled out for 150.
Steve Arkell (35) and Todd Ballman (38) had the only scores of note in a running total of 96 for seven when Couch went in to bat.
A stand of 54 between Couch (28) and Ballman helped give the Shaldon bowlers something to defend.
The Durman brothers had two cheap wickets each for Ashburton.
Ashburton lost Tom Durman on 12 and Tristan Wakefield at 37.
Opener Lloyd White was going nowhere –and neither was Ashley Harvey.
Harvey (62no) overtook White (59no) in a stand of 115 that consigned Shaldon to defeat and left them in the bottom three for another week.
Ashes needed a win to stay in touch with Babbacombe and got what they wanted.
“After a couple of defeats, we have bounced back in great fashion,” said skipper Ashley Berry.
“The discipline among our bowles was great and it was good to see Lloyd and Ashley back in the runs again.
“No doubt we will take this momentum into Saturday’s fixture with Plymouth CS&R.”
FOUR wickets each for Callum Worth and Derek Lammonby sped Chagford towards a 67-run win in the derby clash with Bridestowe.
South African J P van Rensburg top scored with 68 in Chagford’s total of 219 for six. He scored a run-a-ball rate, hitting 12 boundaries while waiting for the bad ball to come along.
Alex Jopling accounted for van Rensburg at 135 for five, which did Bridestowe no favours.
Paul Penberthy (42) was joined by skipper Lammonby in a stand of 65 that took Chagord to maximum bonus points.
Gary Sizmur (2-27) was the only Bridestowe bowler to take more than one wicket.
Sizmur also top scored for Bridestowe in their reply of 142 all out.
Sizmur and Ryan Davies (23) made a positive start, but it all headed south once Craig Penberthy broke them up.
Four wickets went for 14 runs scored as Lammonby (4-31) and Worth (4-32) got to work.
It was all over bar the shouting long before last man Jopling hit 29 off 18 balls.
Chagford, away to leaders Babbacombe this Saturday, are up to third now. Bridestowe are down to two to fourth.
KINGSBIDGE made relatively light work of a six-wicket win over table-proppers Plymouth CS&R.
Bhanu deSilva ran through the Civil batting like a does of salts, taking seven for 18 as Civil were skittled for 99.
Youngster Freddie Ford, operating at the other end, took three for 13.
Having been 83 for two when Declan Schroeder (30) got out, it was quite a collapse on Civil’s part.
Kingsbridge had the runs knocked off inside 16 overs with the minimum of palaver.
James Westlake (26) pointed the chase in the right direction. Ash Treeby (22) and Richard Carr (18) did most of the rest.
Kingsbridge, who are at home to South Devon this Saturday, are up to sixth in the table.
STOKE Gabriel are off the mark at last in the C Division West after dispatching South Devon by 91 runs.
Stoke’s batting, bolstered by the inclusion of former Paignton batsman Neil Robinson, delivered a total of 206 all out.
The top six pretty well delivered with the key hits coming from Dan Bullock (43), Robinson (53no), Seb Ansley (24) and skipper Mike Meech (22).
Stand of the day was one of 53 for the second wicket between Bullock and Meech.
South Devon were all out for 115 with more than 10 overs to bowl.
Dinesh Raheja went in at 11 for one and battled away for 36 off 67 balls.
Support was negligible until Cameron Fogden (12) and Ryan Maunder (21) got on – by when it was too late.
Raheja was seventh out on 99, which left Ansley (2-4) to do the sweeping up.
Stoke Gabriel have a derby date with Dartington & Totnes this Saturday.
