Horspath 2nd went down by 11 runs to Aston Rowant 2nd in a tense Cherwell League Division 1 encounter at the Recreation Ground.
A fluctuating contest saw the visitors recover from 60-5 after choosing to bat to post 241 all out.
Horspath were always in contention in the run chase but the target proved just out of reach as they were bowled out for 230 in the last over.
Ed Oakley (3-37) made the early inroads into the Rowant batting by removing both openers, before new signing Tom Gordon claimed his first Cherwell wicket when he bowled Kaian Eaton for 18.
And when Liam Turnbull (3-31), playing in the top flight for the first time, struck twice, Horspath were firmly in the driving seat.
But then Conor Rogan (41) and Lewis North (21) dug in to add 57 for the sixth wicket, before Logan Rainbow made 53 and Wesley Morrick (35no) continued Rowant's revival with 52 for the eighth wicket.
Horspath's frustration continued as Morrick and Jacob Eaton shared what was to prove a crucial last-wicket stand of 39 with the visitors' total boosted by 43 extras including 35 wides.
The hosts' reply got off to a solid start with Tejas Anand making 23 only for two wickets to fall with the score on 42.
Dan Corner (47) and Robbie Eason added 57 for the third wicket but young leg-spinner Kaian Eaton then worked his way through the order to return impressive figures of 5-20.
Turnbull (21), Gordon (21) and Elliot Ruff (20) all chipped in but wickets continued to fall and Horspath arrived at the last over needing 15 to win.
Eaton stepped up to the plate to complete his five-wicket haul as Horspath stand-in skipper Will Eason finished unbeaten on 26, with extras totalling 46 including 25 wides.
Horspath are away to Banbury 2nd, who lost by seven wickets at Buckingham Town, on Saturday.
Match highlights are available by clicking here
Dan Todd made a fine 76 but it couldn't prevent Horspath 3rd from falling to a four-wicket defeat at home to Buckingham Town 2nd in Division 3B.
He hit nine fours in his 116-ball knock but the only real support came from tail-ender Erasmus Du Toit (33) with the pair putting on 55 for the ninth wicket as the hosts posted 164 after being put in to bat.
Matthew Thatcher (3-20) provided the pick of the Buckingham figures.
Du Toit (2-18) then helped reduce the visitors to 32-3 but captain Aiden Mills-Punshon (53) and Rahil Zaman (32) shared a fourth-wicket stand of 98 to set Buckingham on the way to victory at 165-6.
The side are away to Bledlow Ridge, who won by eight wickets at Thame Town 2nd, on Saturday.
Horspath CC would like to thank the following 2026 Player Sponsors:
Amin Rafiq (STRONG Pilates Oxford)
Asad Rafiq (STRONG Pilates Oxford)
Will Eason (Oxford Marquees)
Josh Richardson (Steve Richardson)
Tyron Eyles (Interduct UK Ltd)
Robbie Eason (ARB UK Ltd)
Tom Coleman (RJA & SL Coleman)
Ryan Hicks (Green & Wakefield)
Ehsan Hussain (RMA Properties)
Tom Nichols (Savona Foodservice)
Josh Cummings (Gardiners Opticians)