Exeter 250-3 beat Paignton 183-6 by 67 runs
Grace Golsworthy’s 95 helped Exeter to an impressive 67-run victory over Paignton and set up a winner-takes-all Division One title clash with Plymouth.
The penultimate round of Division One fixtures brought together the top two sides in the table, with Exeter and Paignton meeting in a game carrying plenty of weight at the business end of the season.
Exeter rose to the occasion, producing an impressive all-round display to win by 67 runs and keep their title ambitions firmly on track.
Golsworthy leads the way
Grace Golsworthy was the standout performer with the bat, falling just five short of a century as she made 95 from 77 balls.
She and Imogen Daldorph gave Exeter the ideal start, putting on 117 for the first wicket. Daldorph played the steadier hand with 39 from 79 balls, while Golsworthy was the more attacking of the pair and struck 16 boundaries.
Paignton finally made the breakthrough in the 22nd over when Daldorph was caught by Hollie Perkin off Ella Gill, but Exeter quickly regained control.
Georgia Read joined Golsworthy and the pair added another 69 for the second wicket. Golsworthy looked well set for three figures before Ellie Bishop brought her innings to an end on 95, but by then Exeter had reached 186 for two.
It was a timely innings from Golsworthy, who has had a disrupted season through a number of minor injuries but appears to be finding her best form at just the right time.
Read carried on the momentum and made 53, combining with Jess Breban in a 50-run stand which kept Exeter firmly on top.
By the time Read departed late in the innings, Exeter were 236 for three. Breban then saw the innings through with an unbeaten 33 as the hosts finished on an imposing 250 for three from their 40 overs.
Exeter keep Paignton behind the rate
Paignton needed a strong start in reply, but captain Hollie Perkin fell for six with only seven on the board.
Ella Gill and Sophie Kirkup began to repair the damage with a 41-run partnership, but Exeter kept taking wickets at crucial times and never allowed Paignton to build the momentum they needed.
Gill made 20 and Kirkup 25 before Paignton slipped from 48 for one to 69 for four. Jemima Vereker’s dismissal for nought added to the pressure before Ellie Bishop and Ellie Knight began to rebuild.
There was plenty to like about Knight’s innings of 36. She batted superbly, struck four boundaries and showed plenty of natural talent as she tried to keep Paignton in the contest.
Her partnership with Bishop added 38 for the fifth wicket, but Exeter again found a wicket at the right time. When Knight became the sixth batter out at 131, Paignton’s hopes of chasing down 251 were all but gone.
Lauren Perkin and Katie Harman ensured the visitors finished on a positive note, putting on an unbeaten 52 for the seventh wicket. Harman finished with 30 not out and Perkin was unbeaten on 21 as Paignton closed on 183 for six.
Wickets shared around
Exeter’s bowlers shared the workload well throughout, with wickets coming regularly enough to keep Paignton behind the required rate.
Katie Donovan returned one for 24 from eight overs and Megan Drury took one for 10 from four, while Lucy Vosper’s economical spell played an important part in keeping the pressure on. Vosper conceded just 13 runs from six overs, including two maidens, helping to stem Paignton’s run rate at a stage when they needed to accelerate.
Daldorph rounded off a good all-round day with one for 16, while Evie Sefton and Lily Sargent also picked up wickets.
Donovan and Elowen Neary set the tone early with the ball, and Exeter’s ability to keep taking wickets at crucial times meant Paignton were always playing catch-up.
Exeter team manager Richard Golsworthy was delighted with the performance and with the timing of Grace’s return to form.
“I’m really pleased for Grace because she hasn’t had a good run at things this season with a long-term hip injury, but she’s finally hitting form at the end of the season. Everybody played their part in a superb victory with both bat and ball.
“We were excellent with the ball, and Paignton were always a little bit behind the run rate because we kept taking wickets at crucial times.
“It’s now effectively in our hands when we welcome Plymouth. All systems go for Plymouth in two weeks’ time. It’ll be a fun one.”
Title on the line
The result leaves Exeter with one simple equation: beat Plymouth in two weeks’ time and the Division One title is theirs.
That sets up a clear winner-takes-all meeting between the two sides, with the championship on the line.
Chris Sleep Reporting
