Sydney University defeated St George by two runs in their Round 2 Belvedere Cup match at Hurstville Oval on Saturday.
Having won the toss and batted, the Students racked up 3-254 off their 50 overs and then restricted the hosts to 5-252 in the tightest of finishes.
Skipper Nick Larkin (87) and Ed Cowan (54) put the Students in a strong position with a 131-run opening partnership, before Ryan Carters (37 not out) and Ashton May (37) cut loose with a 70-run third wicket stand.
Larkin smacked 11 boundaries and a six in his 109-ball stay, while former Test opener Cowan was more circumspect with four boundaries in his 107-ball occupation.
The fireworks came from Carters, with six boundaries and two sixes off 44 balls, and May, with four boundaries and a six in his 30-ball cameo.
St George No.3 Kurtis Patterson led the charge for the hosts with an unbeaten 90, which included eight boundaries and a six.
He shared a 93-run, fourth-wicket stand with Moises Henriques (54 from 55 balls), but when Henriques was bowled by Ashton May, and Ben Joy (3-52) was introduced to the attack the target tightened and Patterson was left stranded.
Despite winning their opening two games, Sydney University are fifth on the ladder in 12 points behind Northern District 14, Sutherland 13, Gordon 13 and Bankstown 13. Penrith (12) make up the top six.
Northern District also lead the Club Championship on 234 points, ahead of Gordon (226), Penrith (182), Sydney (174) and Sydney University (171).
Sydney University Second Grade opener James Larkin provided the highlight of the weekend for the club with a century in his team’s 23-run win over St George at Sydney University Oval.
Larkin notched 118 off 120 balls, including 15 boundaries, in an 82-run opening stand with David Miller (52) as the Students racked up 8-271.
They then restricted St George to 9-254, with Kieran Tate (3-44) and Hayden Kerr (2-43) the best of the trundlers.
St George won Third and Fourth grades, while Sydney University prevailed in Fifth Grade.
Round 3 of the Sydney Premier grade competition will be the first of the two-day matches, with Sydney University up against Manly-Warringah at Manly Oval on 8 and 15 October.
Scoreboard
Sydney Men’s Premier competition: 50 overs – Round 2
First Grade: Sydney University 3-254 off 50 overs (Nick Larkin 87, Ryan Carters 57 not out, Ed Cowan 54, Ashton Mat 37; Moises Henriques 1-33, Nicholas Stapleton 1-10, Darius Visser 1-46) defeated St George 6-252 off 50 overs (Kurtis Patterson 90 not out, Moises Henriques 54, Stewart McCabe 41; Ben Joy 3-53, Devlin Malone 2-42) by two runs at Hurstville Oval on Saturday. Toss: Points: Sydney University. Points: Sydney University 6, St George 0.
Second Grade: Sydney University 8-271 off 50 overs (James Larkin 118, David Miller 52, Ben Trevor-Jones 47; Mitchell Edwards 3-39, Ross Vergopoulos 1-3) defeated St George 9-254 off 50 overs (Luke Bartier 68, Andrew Hicks 46, Mitchell Edwards 44; Kieran Tate 3-44, Hayden Kerr 2-43) by 23 runs at Sydney University Oval on Saturday. Toss: Sydney University. Points: Sydney University 6, St George 0.
Third Grade: St George 3-207 off 43.5 overs (Rodney Krause 74, Nick Shurmer 53 not out, Mitchell Gray 52; Xavier Frawley 1-41, Jonathon Craig Dobson 0-27) defeated Sydney University 6-206 off 50 overs (Matthew Powys 63 not out, Kevin Jacob 49; Mitchell Gray 2-30, Saahil Parekh 1-21) at Harold Fraser Reserve on Saturday. Toss: Sydney University. Points: St George 6, Sydney University 0.
Fourth Grade: St George 176off 41.2 overs (Jackson Shaw 48, Andrew Pandelis 28; Henry Clark 2-12, Lewis McMahon 2-22, Sameer Murphy 2-29) defeated Sydney University 76 off 19 overs (Jake Day 33 not out; Michael Kennedy 5-20, Thomas Kennedy 3-29) by 100 runs, with a bonus point, at St Paul’s College on Saturday. Toss: St George. Points: St George 7, Sydney University 0.
Fifth Grade: Sydney University 234 off 50 overs (Brayden Dilley 75, Douglas Rogers 40; Matthew Iemma 3-34, James Stirton 2-33) defeated St George 187 off 40.4 overs (Jarrod Mazurkiewicz 53, Joshua Moors 33, James Stirton 26 not out) by 47 runs at Camperdown Oval on Saturday. Toss: Sydney University. Points: Sydney University 6, St George 0.
Metropolitan Cup competition: 50 overs – Round 2
Gordon 0-94 off 18 overs (Brady Morrison 49 not out, Anshul Baruah 36 not out) defeated Sydney University 93 off 34.3 overs (Tristan Mears 39; Nicholas Dellis 3-20, Aaron Crofts 2-10, Manus Chauhan 2-16) by 10 wickets at St Andrew’s College Oval on Saturday. Toss: Sydney University. Points: Gordon 6, Sydney University 0.
