Williams, Sampras make semis

NEW YORK (AP) - Venus Williams needed a set to adjust to the wind and cold before turning on her power game. Pete Sampras needed no such warmup period, hitting his first serve of the match at 134 mph.

Undermined by repeated errors in the first set, the fifth-seeded Williams overwhelmed No. 4 Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario during the rest of her 2-6, 6-1, 6-1 victory to set up a semifinal match against No. 2 Lindsay Davenport.

The top-seeded Sampras had 13 aces in a 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 victory over No. 9 Karol Kucera, who had eliminated Andre Agassi a day earlier. Sampras will play defending champion Patrick Rafter in the semifinals.

"Considering the conditions, I think I played pretty well. It was really nasty out here, really cold, and I'm just glad to get out of it," Sampras said. "'With the conditions tonight, it wasn't fun to play. With the wind gusting in the third set, I couldn't even feel the racket my hands were so cold."

Once Williams adjusted to the wind and cold, she was able to play her game. Williams began the match wearing a bright yellow hooded sweatshirt, but still seemed bothered by the chilly evening. She was trailing 3-2 and had already lost her serve twice when she stripped to a light-blue tank top.

Williams seemed to lunge for shots the rest of the set, battling the swirling wind as much as her opponent.

But then she decided to become more careful with her shots, and began to turn the match around.

"It was windy. I wasn't hitting my big serves. I just had to spin them in," Williams said. "The errors had to stop or else I was just going to be heading home. There was just no other alternative, no other option available."

After 18 unforced errors and three double faults in the first set, Williams had just 17 unforced errors and two double faults the rest of the match. And, as she regained control of her shots, she was able to turn up the power.

The game of the match came late in the second set. On the 22nd point of the game, Williams finally converted her sixth set point to even the match.

Williams broke Sanchez-Vicario's serve in the first game of the third set, and again in the fifth on a shot the Spaniard thought was going out and watched as it hit the line. Williams closed out the match with yet another break, wrapping up the victory with a backhand down the line.

"She started playing much more aggressive. She started attacking," Sanchez-Vicario said. "I mean, she's a player that hits the ball really hard."

09-10-98