Northamptonshire 190 for 5 (Vasconcelos 59, Duffy 2-27) Worcestershire 159 (Roderick 29, Sanderson 6-8) by 31 runs
Ben Sanderson stole the show as he returned figures of 6 for 8, including sealing the match with a hat-trick, as Northants Steelbacks hurried to a 31-run win over Worcestershire Rapids in the Vitality Blast North Group.
Setting their opponents 191 to win, it was Ricardo Vasconcelos (59) who anchored the Steelbacks innings.
In reply, the hosts never got a foothold in the game, with plenty of batters making starts, but regular wickets hampering their pursuit of a competitive score. Sanderson's exceptional evening was capped off with three-in-three as a clinical Northants bowling performance secured them a fourth straight win.
Having won the toss and elected to bat first, David Willey's side got off to the worst possible start, losing opener Matthew Breetzke, in the first over of the match when he was caught off a Jacob Duffy bouncer.
Ricardo Vasconcelos, came together with Willey, with both playing the conditions and bowling superbly, as pace on the ball only aided the run scoring.
The pair added 74 for the second-wicket, including Willey taking one Ethan Brookes over for 21. Worcestershire had their spinners to thank in the middle overs however, as Tom Hinely removed Willey for 36, before Fateh Singh entered the attack to dismiss Justin Broad for 1.
At 79 for 3, Vasconcelos was the in and set batter for Northants, who continued his terrific display of ball-striking on his way to an eye-catching 50 off just 34 balls.
With veteran Ravi Bopara at the crease, the visitors continued their progress as the run-rate lingered around the ten-an-over mark, as the pair brought up their fifty partnership for the fourth-wicket.
Fateh Singh (1 for 16) produced a canny four-over spell for his side, before Australian seamer Ben Dwarshuis returned to end the dangerous Vasoncelos onslaught for 59.
Bopara, departed shortly after when he failed to clear the long-off boundary, and with his exit the Steelbacks found themselves stuttering somewhat at 147 for 5, doing well to add 43 in the final three overs to set the home side 191 to win.
Sanderson opened his account for the evening when he removed the Rapids skipper in the second over of the reply, before following up with the big wicket of Kashif Ali, in his next, to leave Worcestershire 22 for 2 after four-overs.
Pollock was the next man to go, before Brookes (15) followed suit not long after when Lloyd Pope had him caught out, as the Steelbacks bowling unit tightened their grip on proceedings.
Adam Hose held the key for the hosts, as he continued to accumulate boundaries with new partner Gareth Roderick - but when he held out for 27, the odds were stacked against the Rapids.
George Scrimshaw castled the threatening Gareth Roderick for 29, before the Rapids lost Hinley (21) and Dwarshuis (26), to all but end their hopes of a big comeback.
Sanderson finished the evening with a hat-trick, to complete his exceptional figures of 6 for 8 from his four over spell, as he and his bowling counterparts drove their team to a thoroughly deserved 31-run victory.
