BLU won the toss and elected to bowl and, despite conceding some early extras, Amy Fitzgerald trapped Tracey Brereton in front for two late in the first over to give the Lions a dream start.
Two more wickets saw Evie Hawks (3) and Cody Power (1) also depart cheaply
In trouble at 3-18, Nathalia rallied through Abby Favaro, who steadied the ship with 13, progressing her side to 31 before she returned a Bree Styles delivery to sender, gone caught and bowled.
Jessica Daniel replaced Favaro at the crease and her efforts made the next two wickets profitable for Nathalia, the score at 7-64 by the time she too departed.
The tail eked out a few extra runs in the final overs as Nathalia posted a respectable total of 9-82 from its 20-over stay.
Rankin’s 2-7 represented best figures for BLU, who then set about chasing down the Nathalia total.
The opening pairing of Styles and Ruby Brentall got the Lions off to a strong start, Styles making most of the runs as Brentnall held on to her wicket effectively.
The two added 20 before Brentnall was sent to the sheds, and Styles followed soon after to leave BLU in the promising but tenuous position of 2-24.
Chloe Forster and Amy Fitzgerald added 15 before Forster’s departure made way for Emily Holgate.
Fitzgerald and Holgate batted out most of the remaining overs, ticking the scoreboard over effectively.
Fitzgerald retired for a well-worked 11 in the 18th over but a slow scoring rate left BLU requiring a run a ball for the final two overs.
After meeting that target in the 19th, a no-ball brought the required runs down to five before Rankin’s dismissal set up a grandstand finish.
Holgate found herself on strike for the final two balls of the innings, requiring four runs to win, and brilliantly guided the ball to the rope to seal BLU’s first win of the season, 5-83 to 9-82.
Holgate finished on 24 from 30 balls, and would have been forced to retire had the innings gone a ball longer, while Evie Hawks was the best of the Nathalia bowlers, taking 2-14.
Rochester vs Katamatite
Following a bye last week, Rochester’s senior women’s side picked up where it left off and claimed a convincing win over Katamatite in round three.
After winning the toss, Rochy sent the Katty Tigers in to bat first, where they got off to a slow start.
Christina Roberts made four runs inside the first two overs before Cadence Major struck for the opening wicket, bowling Abigail Brooker for a duck.
Katty Tigers’ Jessica Bennett combined with Roberts to build momentum before the latter retired not out for 18 in the eighth over.
Rochy’s Sarah Taylor claimed the scalp of Sienna Hutchinson shortly after Roberts’ retirement, the number four scoring just one run before being dismissed.
In a mix-up between wickets, Bennett was run out by Major and Rebecca Wade for a pair of runs.
Annika Edis and Sophie Stanley provided some resistance against Rochy’s bowling before Edis was forced to retire not out at the start of the 19th over for 13.
Kylie Wooden faced just three deliveries in the final over before being caught and bowled by Rebecca Wade for a duck.
After a strong bowling effort from Rochester, Katamatite finished its 20-over innings at 6-74.
The Katty Tigers would need to draw first blood early if they were going to be any hope of winning and their star player Christina Roberts did just that, bowling Sarah Taylor with the very first ball of the innings.
Yet, the early blow didn’t seem to rattle Rochy as Major and Taya Munro steered the ship in the following overs, combining for a handy second-wicket partnership.
Ultimately, Katty Tigers’ Abigail Brooker broke through in the seventh over, with Georgia Watson catching Munro for 8.
Major retired not out shortly after for 16, which meant there were two new batters at the crease midway through the innings.
Miranda Crawford and Imogen Kath played well together until the former was bowled by Sophie Stanley at the start of the 13th over for four.
Just two deliveries later, Stanley picked up another. This time it was a Roberts catch to send Wade back to the sheds for a golden duck.
Hayley Broucek managed to ward off the hattrick ball but was dismissed a delivery later for a duck, Stanley was on a roll with three wickets in an over.
Rochester’s horror 13th over continued after Stanley secured a four-wicket maiden with the last ball of the over, this time it was a caught and bowled effort to dismiss Keeley Major.
With six overs left, 16 runs to get and four wickets remaining, things looked dead even for Rochester and Katamatite down the stretch.
Imogen Kath and Trinity Hayler proved to be Rochy’s heroes of the night as the pair chased down the remaining runs in 16 overs, with Kath ending the innings on an unbeaten 20 runs, a match high.
In other results, Echuca downed Kyabram by 66 runs, Nagambie had a 10-wicket win over Cooma and Shepparton outlasted Moama by six runs.
Next Sunday, Rochester will face Nathalia in Nathalia, while BLU has the week off.
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