North Mymms secured a vital home win in the battle at the bottom of the Herts Cricket League Premiership - although the loss did nothing to ease the pain of visitors Welwyn Garden City.
The four-wicket victory lifts Mymms up to fifth, but crucially they are now 40 points clear of second-bottom Welwyn.
And WGC's troubles don't end there, with the gap to safety above them now 26 points.
They did post a score that was around par but their downfall was not picking up early wickets to put the home side under pressure, leaving them always chasing the game.
After a strong batting performance to try and save the game last week against Potters Bar, Welwyn skipper opted to bat first after winning the toss.
And openers Dylan Van Der Westhuizen and Fayaz Homyoon did start strongly, taking the score to 31 in the seventh over, before the latter was run out for 13.
When Aussie Jack Clayton was caught by Jakob Bhula, off an excellent ball from Richard Oxley for 10, and Van Der Westhuizen’s 56-ball innings was ended by another catch by
Bhula off Rhys Wynne for 16, the away side were 58-3.
Radha Marripati, Welwyn's Mr Dependable this season, did the rebuilding job with his best innings of the season so far
Partnerships of 31 with Andy Lovell (16) and 29 with Alex Chalker (20) started the process but it was the stand with Emerton (25) that gave the score some respectability.
Between them they put on 95 with Marripati hitting 13 fours and five sixes on his way to a maiden century for the club.
He was finally caught off Oxley, with his 114 coming off 124 balls and making him the Premiership's leading run scorer with 366.
It helped put Welwyn up to 255-7 in 60 overs, Oxley bowling a third of them as he finished 2-104.
They entered the field with plenty of confidence but also with the knowledge that wickets were needed.
They didn't get wickets but Emerton and Dan Orchard did restrict Mymms to just 36 in 12 overs.
The problem was that allowed Mymms' openers, Guganeshan Muralitharan and Zaid Kureshi, to find their feet and they took the opening wicket partnership to 106, adding 70 more in the next 13 overs.
Marripati had Kureshi caught by Emerton for 51, but Muralitharan powered on with help from Bhula.
He got to 106, crafted off 101 balls and containing 17 fours and a six, eventually falling with Mymms on 190.
Clayton was the bowler with Marripati taking the catch and the pair struck again to remove Bhula for 34.
By that point though, Mymms were nearly home and dry on 229-3, needing another 27 runs and with nine overs to get them.
Marripati did strike twice more, with Clayton also taking his third, before they did, Richard Soulsby and Dharmarajsinh Jhala guiding them home with three overs to spare.
Clayton finished with 3-72 off 17 overs while Marripati took 3-73 in 12 overs, adding to his century and three catches.
Welwyn reach half-way in the season with a home game against second-placed Radlett, knowing they need to start winning games soon.
Mymms meanwhile will look to channel their new form into a trip to third-placed Totteridge Millhillians, just seven points ahead of them in the standings.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here