Surrey 103 for 8 (Spence 24, Graham 3-19) beat Durham 102 (MacDonald-Gay 6-11) by two wickets
Ryana MacDonald-Gay returned the best figures ever recorded in women's domestic T20 cricket as Surrey won a low-scoring thriller against Durham by two wickets at the Kia Oval.
The Surrey speedster in only her third game back following a spinal lumber injury was on a hat-trick three times in her 6 for 11 as the visitors were bundled out for 102, Bethan Miles taking 2 for 10 on her Blast debut. Bess Heath top scored for Durham with 28.
Durham fought magnificently to defend the total, Heather Graham taking 3 for 19 and Trudy Johnson 2 for 20, helped by some frenetic batting from the hosts, but Alice Monaghan (20 not out) kept her head to see Surrey home.
Although Hollie Armitage fell early there was little sign of what was to come as Emily Windsor and Mady Villiers, the latter with the aid of a six, took Durham to 37 for 1.
However, Monaghan's sharp fielding to run out Villiers was MacDonald's Gay cue to wreak havoc, Windsor edging behind before Graham was bowled between bat and pad.
Mia Rogers saved the first of the hat-trick balls before MacDonald-Gay returned to have her caught by Kira Chathli off a mistimed pull shot. Grace Thompson was plumb lbw and MacDonald-Gay was within inches of the hat-trick with a ball that missed both Sophia Turner's bat and the stumps by a whisker.
Heath swept Alice Davidson-Richards for six in a show of defiance, but MacDonald-Gay couldn't be kept out of the action for long, seeing off Turner courtesy of a great grab in the field by Laura Harris before spreadeagling Johnson's stumps. For the third time, the batter survived the hat-trick bid.
Miles tidied up the rest, including Heath with the help of a catch from skipper Bryony Smith.
Surrey lost Smith and Davidson-Richards inside three overs as they began the chase, the latter's stumps rearranged by a corker of a delivery from Lauren Filer.
Spence, though, played positively from the get-go, plundering three fours from one Katie Levick over before clubbing Filer over midwicket for a fourth boundary.
Kira Chathli dispatched a full toss from Filer, but her somewhat skittish effort ended when she holed out at mid-off from the final ball of the powerplay.
Spence was dropped on 18 at fly slip from the very next delivery bowled by Filer who gained recompense later in the over when castling Paige Scholfield.
Spence then spooned Trudy Johnson into the hands of point and Harris, despite getting off the mark with a six, never looked comfortable before falling for 11.
At 68 for 6 but well ahead of the rate, Surrey needed cool heads, but Moore was stumped to crank up the tension further.
MacDonald-Gay, who wouldn't have expected to bat, was yorked by Graham with nine still needed but Monaghan, whose 29 had been crucial in victory over Yorkshire three days earlier, saw them over the line with 20 balls to spare.
