Cagliari picked up an important three points in their battle against relegation from Serie A thanks to a 3-0 win over Catania at the Stadio Nereo Rocco in Trieste.
The Sardinians, playing their second game in Friulia-Venezia Giulia due to problems with their Sant'Elia home, took the lead through Thiago Ribeiro in the 21st minute.
After wasting numerous chances early in the second half, Mauricio Pinilla settled their nerves with the second in the 79th minute before Victor Ibarbo added a third to take them six points clear of the drop zone, albeit having played one game more than Lecce.
Atalanta eased their relegation jitters with a narrow 1-0 victory over Chievo.
Maximiliano Moralez scored the only goal in the second half as the hosts climbed to ninth place, eight points clear of the drop zone and now level with Chievo, who drop behind their opponents to 10th.
A poor first period was peppered with optimistic shots from distance that failed to trouble either goalkeeper.
The only goal arrived in the 72nd minute, Ezequiel Schelotto the provider with the ball in to Moralez, who took aim from inside the area with an effort that flew high into the top-left corner.
The hosts nearly doubled their lead on 83 minutes when Giacomo Bonaventura's close-range header went narrowly over.