Budleigh Salterton put together a brave run chase before falling to a 25-run defeat in a terrific game at North Devon in the A Division of Devon Cricket.
The home side chose to bat first after the winning the toss and it proved a good decision, as they put together a terrific innings to finish on 262-6, with Jack Moore (60) and Ben Howe (54) the pick of the batsmen.
Budleigh captain Lloyd Murrin tried everything to keep the total at a manageable level, using six bowlers, with Ed Doble the top performer, as he kept things admirably tight to finish on figures of 2-20 from his ten overs.
It was, however, a tough target for the Budleigh boys, but opener Harry Parkin was in imperious form and started to climb the mountain with an excellent 65 before he was beaten by the crafty spin bowling of George McEndoo.
Theo Northover also made a decent start at the other end and reached 27 when he was dismissed. Parkin was joined in the middle by Tom Oxland, who put together a tremendous knock of 58 from just 63 balls.
It was a second-wicket partnership of 114 runs and Budleigh had a genuine chance of overhauling their North Devon hosts with the score on 148.
The loss of Parkin ultimately proved decisive, as Budleigh found their linchpin back in the hutch and still needing a further 100 runs to claim victory.
The double loss of Murrin and Matt Kimber for just a single each was a massive momentum shift for North Devon, who could now sense victory.
The flamboyant Doble backed up his fine bowling effort with an entertaining 34 from 30 balls, alongside an unbeaten 25 from Charles Parkin, but the home total was just too much.
Budleigh finished on a credible 237-8 and that will give them some confidence for the weekend visit of Seaton, who are two places below them in the table.