Games We Play: Aston century takes Young Ashdod top of the table

By JERUSALEM POST STAFF
Raymond Aston scored a magnificent 111 as Young Ashdod successfully chased down an imposing target of 237 set by Ramle at Hadar Yosef on Saturday. The victory takes Young Ashdod top of the table with one match to play. Lions Lod are 11 points behind but with a match in hand. Suji Summeet (43), Nathan Borgawkar (39) and Isaac Samson (33) were all amongst the runs as Ramle scored 237 batting first, a score they would have thought easily defendable with their strong bowling attack. However Israel international Aston had other ideas, showing his class with a match-winning century. Young Ashdod won with three overs and two wickets in hand. In another Division 1 fixture played at Hadar Yosef on Friday, a weakened Beersheva team was shown no mercy by host Ra'anana, crashing to a 210-run defeat. Ra'anana won the toss and had no hesitation electing to bat in scorching heat, with Israel Under-19 opener Reuven Bergman (60) giving them a good start with a typically agressive innings. Danny Hotz (45) and David Silver (29) kept the momentum going with a 96-run stand for the fourth wicket, before Rafi Zauer (48) and Adrian Vard (32 not out) let loose in the final overs to take Ra'anana to 299 for 6 in their 40 overs. Beeersheva's batting was as woeful as their bowling, with only Menashe Valvotkar (32) showing any resistance. Steven Shein (3 for 17) was Ra'anana's most successful bowler as Be'er Sheva were all out for just 89. In Division 2 on Saturday, Sitar Eilat reached their target of 245 in 37 overs, to beat Dimona A by six wickets in Dimona. Eliezer Divekar (82 not out) top scored for Eilat. Avshalom Sankar almost single handedly steered Kiryat Gat to a five-wicket win over Negev Academy in Kiryat Gat on Saturday, scoring 78 as the home side raced to their target of 130 inside 20 overs. Raz ben Zaken was the only player to shine for the Negev youngsters, scoring 38 and taking three for 40 with the ball.