Sarah Bryce, Emma Jones keep Blaze treble on hopes on track

Lucy Higham bags four-for to help dismiss Somerset for 192 despite Sophie Luff fifty

The Blaze 193 for 4 (S Bryce 54*, Jones 53*) beat Somerset 192 (Luff 52, Higham 4-28) by six wickets

The Blaze kept on course for a clean sweep of domestic trophies as a six-wicket bonus point victory over Somerset maintained their grip on top spot in the Metro Bank One-Day Cup women's competition, needing one win from their last two fixtures to guarantee their place in the final on September 19.

Somerset captain Sophie Luff made her fourth half-century of the 50-over season, Alex Griffiths 38 and Niamh Holland 32 but her side's 192 all out in 46.1 overs always felt like too little against a team that had won seven run chases out of nine before this one.

So it proved as unbeaten half-centuries from Sarah Bryce (54 from 65 balls) and Emma Jones (53 off 44) saw The Blaze home with 11.3 overs to spare after Tammy Beaumont had earlier made 39.

Spinner Lucy Higham impressed with four for 28 for The Blaze and there were two wickets each for Grace Ballinger and Kirstie Gordon after The Blaze had won the toss.

Second-placed Hampshire, who meet The Blaze at the Utilita Bowl on Wednesday in their final group game, kept up the pressure with a bonus-point win over Yorkshire, but The Blaze have the advantage of a game in hand against bottom-of-the-table Essex at Chesterfield next Friday.

Somerset are still in a race with Warwickshire for third spot in the table and a place in the eliminator round, going into the last week just one point behind the Edgbaston-based side. Both have two matches left.

The Blaze have already lifted silverware twice this season, winning both the Vitality Blast and Vitality T20 County Cup competitions.

On the pitch used for Nottinghamshire's four-day match against Leicestershire that ended on Saturday, Somerset managed only two boundaries in the opening powerplay, losing Bex Odgers and Emma Corney as they struggled to 22 for 2 from 10.

Luff regularly stepped down the pitch to drive profitably, her half-century from 55 deliveries with seven fours dominating a 66-run partnership with Holland. But she missed a ball pushed wide by Kathryn Bryce and was stumped.

Wickets then fell at regular intervals. After Holland was bowled by a grubber, Jess Hazell found extra cover before Higham's skilful, loopy offspin accounted for Katie Jones (stumped), Jazz Westley (caught long-on), Chloe Skelton and Griffiths (bowled) before Ballinger bowled Lola Harris to finish the innings.

In pursuit of their target, The Blaze likewise lost two wickets in the powerplay, Prisha Thanawala (caught at slip) and Kathryn Bryce (caught behind) as Ellie Anderson twice found the edge of the bat. Georgia Elwiss fell to a leaping, one-handed catch at fine leg as Somerset's spinners kept a tight rein on the scoring rate but at 95 for 3 at the halfway point, The Blaze were on course.

The loss of Beaumont at 105 for 4 in the 27th over raised Somerset's hopes, the former England international departing as Hazell, diving forward, made a superb one-handed grab at deep midwicket.

But Sarah Bryce and Jones then took charge, consistently rotating the strike and judging the right moments to be aggressive. Bryce completed a half-century off 62 balls with three fours, Jones getting there from just 43 balls with seven fours.