Auckland maintained its lead at the head of the State Insurance Cup competition with a comfortable 96-run win over Northern Districts in Whangarei today.

It was always going to be difficult for ND to chase the target of 244 set by Auckland and when Munokoa Tunupopo got among the ND batsmen while taking 4-32 off nine overs, there was no hope for ND.

Kathryn Ramel completed a fine double by taking 2-8 from four overs.

Earlier, she had scored 92 as she and Ingrid Cronin-Knight put on 93 for the fifth wicket. Cronin-Knight scored 28 while Shelly Fruin scored 34.

For Northern Districts, Amy Lenssen scored 29 not out , Skye Sandilands 27 and Janice Fraser 24.

Canterbury also took a comfortable win over Wellington at the Petone Recreation Ground in Lower Hutt. Canterbury batted first and scored 256/7.

Nicky Payne top scored with 79 while Lisa Astle scored 68. They shared a second-wicket partnership of 107 runs. Haidee Tiffen backed their efforts up by scoring 38. Anna Corbin was the best of the Wellington bowlers, taking 3-46 from her 10 overs.

Wellington could only manage 131 in reply with Anna O'Leary 49 not out, batting at No 3, while Maia Lewis scored 22.

Hannah Rae had a fine return with 5-25 off eight overs while Haidee Tiffen took 2-21.

At Fitzherbert Park in Palmerston North, Otago scored 149 when dismissed after 46.3 overs against Central Districts and the home team made the most of Kate Pulford's good fortune to record a four-wicket win.

Rachel Pullar top scored for Otago with 53, scored off 78 balls. Batting at No 6, she came to the wicket with Otago in trouble at 41/4, and she left when the score was 144/9. Extras was the second highest score with 31, 27 of which were wides. Melissa Murray took 3-27 from eight overs, Aimee Mason 2-27 from 10 and Donna Trow 2-14 from 10.

However, an easy chance dropped at mid-on early in Pulford's innings of 83 from 126 balls, and a run out chance missed when Clare Taylor wasn't able to hold a return throw to the wicket, took the pressure off CD.

Taylor, who took 2-22 off 6.2 overs was sitting on a hat-trick having dismissed Pulford and Erin McDonald with the last two balls of her sixth over.

CD only needed two more runs to win, and one run was taken from the next over and then Aimee Mason survived the hat-trick ball and then scored the winning run from the next ball. Beth McNeill took 2-28 from her eight overs.

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