NEW YORK -- Top-ranked Serena Williams knew she hadnt dropped a set going into her quarterfinal showdown against Simona Halep. But that didnt stop Williams from channeling a little Goran Ivanisevic of old after her previous two US Open matches -- both romps. Williams wryly spoke about herself in the third person, claiming she was waiting for the real Serena to show up and how she dearly hoped it would be soon.On Wednesday night, Williams finally got her wish in what might have been the most scintillating womens tennis match of the year.After a torrid start in which it seemed she might run Halep right off the court, Williams needed every bit of her legendary game -- her service bombs, her defensive prowess and net play, the power ground strokes and delicate drop shots she parachuted down here and there -- to survive everything Halep started to throw at her during the 2 hours, 14 minutes they raged at each other on a muggy night at Arthur Ashe Stadium.Until this match, no previous opponent had managed to keep Williams on-court more than 68 minutes. In the end, Williams knew she had only herself to blame for the length of this match. She went 0-for-12 on break points in the second set and double-faulted to hand Halep a decisive break of her own.But it wasnt just that. The fifth-seeded Halep spectacularly took advantage of the openings Williams gave her. This was before Williams rose up just as spectacularly herself in the third set and eventually pulled away to a 6-2, 4-6, 6-3 win.I didnt play the same match in the second [set] that I did in the first, Williams said. Thats what makes me really calm. I feel like I can play so much better. I think everyone here knows I can play better.I was rather positive today -- and thats definitely not normal, but Im just going to go with it, Williams joked with a comical roll of her eyes.Though she wasnt asked about it once, the 34-year-old Williams is playing for a lot at this tournament. She has a chance to tie Chris Evert for the most US Open title wins ever, at seven. She has a chance to break a tie with Steffi Graf and get her 23rd career major win, a record for the Open era.Williams already moved by Roger Federer a match ago for the most-ever Grand Slam tournament wins (shes now at 309 ? and counting) but her hold on the No. 1 ranking for 186 consecutive weeks-- another record she shares with Graf -- is in jeopardy if she doesnt win this tournament and Angelique Kerber, whom she lost to at the Australian Open but beat in the Wimbledon final, does.Thats a lot of history in play. But its almost peculiar how little such milestones are even talked about much anymore. Williams already owns so many, its getting hard to keep track of them all. The bandwidth of her career has been so extraordinary for so long, its starting to feel like one of those stories in which the script gets flipped.The sum of all she has done is starting to feel greater than the parts.Halep seemed to surrender to the same idea when asked to describe how this match got away from her.She is the best player, Halep said, as if the statement hardly needed any elaboration.Halep is now 1-8 for her career against Williams but said she could at least walk away from this match knowing, This was the best I ever had against her.But Halep also knows her 105-mph serves pale next to the 120-plus bombs that Williams was smashing at her. And if she was ever going to win this match, it was going to have to happen the way it almost did: Shed have to be ready to chase down every ball Williams smashed back at her; shed have to absorb the power Williams packs into her groundstrokes and snap off some winners herself; and shed have to minimize her own mistakes and try to match Williams will and hope Williams gave her a glimmer of daylight here and there.And it nearly happened.But in the end, another difference was Halep couldnt overcome failing to convert two service break points in the first game of the third set, but Williams finally broke her a few games after that.Even an hour after the match, it was that missed opportunity that still stood out to the fifth-seeded Romanian. Said Halep: If there I could take that game, I think the story of the match wouldve been different.But she didnt. And it wasnt.Williams will now move on to play 10-seed Karolina Plishkova, the WTA Tour leader in aces, Thursday night in a semifinal that is already being hyped as having the potential to deliver the most aces ever struck in a single womens match. It will be interesting to see how Williams sore right shoulder, which has bothered her for weeks, will respond to back-to-back matches.The second-seeded Kerber and resurgent Caroline Wozniacki meet in the nights other semifinal.Williams was low-key Wednesday through much of her postmatch media conference -- even when reminded it was Plishkova who rallied to beat her sister Venus earlier in this tournament, depriving she and Serena of a chance to perhaps meet in a Slam semi for the first time in years. But Serena did seem a bit intrigued when a reporter went on to mention that Plishkova also has a sister who plays on tour -- but the Plishkovas are twins.Have you ever thought about another identical copy of you floating around, how tough that might be? Serena was asked.And the real Serena was indeed back.It would be a living hell, Williams cracked. Cheap Football Japan Jerseys Wholesale Japan Jerseys . -- Cam Newton pranced into the end zone, placed his hands over his chest and did his familiar Superman pose. http://www.cheapjapanjerseys.com/ . Their experience showed Tuesday as the No. 10 Badgers blunted a Saint Louis surge to win 63-57 and advance to face West Virginia in Wednesdays finals of the Cancun Challenge. Japan World Cup Jerseys . Los Angeles star goalie survived those perilous gymnastics with no problem, and he eventually backstopped the Kings to a skid-snapping win. Quick stopped 27 shots in his return from a 24-game injury absence, Jeff Carter scored the tiebreaking goal with 7:55 to play, and the Kings snapped their five-game losing streak with a 3-1 victory over the Vancouver Canucks on Saturday night. Replica Japan Jerseys . Kyle Denbrook, a soccer player from Saint Marys University, took the CIS male athlete of the week honour. Stanley, a fourth-year business administration student from Charlottetown, scored both goals in a 2-0 win over Dalhousie on Friday and tallied again in a 1-0 win over Saint Marys on Sunday. Jimmy Gopperth scored 19 points as Wasps beat Leicester in their own backyard for the first time since 2008.The centre scored a try and kicked 14 points as Wasps picked up a bonus point 34-22 win at Welford Road.Wasps other tries came from Christian Wade, Sam Jones and Guy Thompson, while Ed Slater and Lachlan McCaffrey replied for the Tigers who had fought back from 27-8 down to get within five points before Gopperths late try.Leicester pair Peter Betham and Ellis Genge were sin binned as was Wasps Guy Thompson.Leicester were boosted by the return of England prop Dan Cole and lock Mike Fitzgerald while Wasps, although without seven players, had flanker Thomas Young back after a four month injury lay-off and new signings lock Matt Symons and prop Marty Moor made their first starts.But it was veteran centre Gopperth who had the biggest influence on the first half.He had a hand in all Wasps points as the visitors established a 13-8 half time lead, kicking eight points and carving out a try for winger Wade.Leicester, who struggled to get their attacking game going, replied with a try from Lachlan McCaffrey and a penalty from Freddie Burns.Two penalties by Gopperth to one from Burns put Wasps 6-3 ahead after 24 minutes but two minutes later Wasps silenced the big crowd with a try out of the blue.It came as the Tigers were hammering down the right touchline but Wasps pinched the ball, and Gopperth scooted down the wing before putting a lovely weighted chip inside to give Wade an easy try.Gopperth added the conversion and it looked as though Wasps might repeat their thrashing of Leicester att the Ricoh Arena in March, but the Tigers hit back five minutes later after McCaffrey chipped down the left wing for South Africa wing JP Pietersen.ddddddddddddasps failed to deal with it and after Tigers stole the ball McCaffrey dummied to Pietersen before crashing over. Burns missed the conversion.The second half was barely two minutes old when Wasps stretched their lead to 20-8 with a try from Guy Thompson and a conversion from Gopperth.It came after Leicester centre Peter Betham failed to deal with a bouncing ball in his own 22 and, after Wasps pounced, Thompson surged through some poor tackles for an easy try.And four minutes later flanker Sam Jones was awarded a try by the video referee after squeezing over from close range after a great counter by scrum half Joe Simpson. Gopperth converted to make it 27-8.Three minutes later Leicester were back in thanks to a try from lock Slater after a crossfield kick to Pietersen.Burns missed the conversion but then slotted two long-range penalties before missing a third.Burns kicked one from close range in the 64th minute after Wasps had been reduced to 14 men following a yellow card for Thompson for a dangerous tackle on Betham.Elliot Daly missed a 51-metre penalty for Wasps and Gopperth missed two easy ones, the second after Ellis Genge was sin binned for a dangerous tackle.Gopperth then rounded things off by scoring Wasps fourth try after Betham had been sin binned, the same player then kicked the conversion. Cheap NFL Womens Jerseys Cheap Jerseys Wholesale NFL Womens Jerseys Cheap Jerseys China Wholesale NFL Jerseys Jerseys NFL China Wholesale Jerseys Free Shipping ' ' '