Raids » has an ERA of 6.98 over his last seven.

MONTREAL - Venus Williams recalls the first time she played against younger sister Serena in a top-level match. They were still teenagers. It was the second round of the 1999 Australian Open, and Venus won in two sets. "I totally remember," Venus Williams said Friday at the US$2.44 million Rogers Cup. "We had a tough match back then. "Thats the trend that started and it hasnt changed. I suspect this will be another tough match." The 34-year-old Venus and the 32-year-old Serena have their 26th career meeting in the semifinals of the hardcourt event at Uniprix Stadium on Saturday. Serena, ranked first in the world, is 15-10 against her 26th-ranked sister, although one was a walkover when her sister withdrew. She has won the last five head-to-head matches. "I have to play well," added Venus Williams, whose last win over Serena was at Dubai in 2009. "Theres no secret or science to it. "I think anyone who has got any wins against her, theyve pretty much played the match of their life. Granted, Id like to imagine that I wont have to play the match of my life. Thats tough to do. But I know I need to play well." Both rallied from one-set deficits to win their quarter-final matches. Serena Williams defeated Denmarks Caroline Wozniacki 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 while Venus Williams dispatched 14th-seeded Carla Suarez Navarro 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. "I definitely dont like playing her," Serena Williams said of her sister. "I think Ive lost to her more than anyone on the tour, so its definitely not a fun match. "Shes tough. She has a great serve. She runs every ball down. She has a great backhand. She hits winners off the forehand. She does everything well so its not an ideal matchup for anyone, to be honest." In another quarter-final, Ekaterina Makarova ended the Cinderella run of American qualifier Coco Vanderweghe with a 6-1, 4-6, 6-1 victory. Vanderweghe had knocked off two former world No. 1s en route to the quarter-finals. Makarova will play the winner of a later quarter-final between Victoria Azarenka and Agnieszka Radwanska. The sisters will meet for the first time since Serena Williams cruised to a 6-1, 6-1 win on clay at Charleston, S.C., in 2003. Between them, the Williams sisters have won 24 grand slam tournaments, with Serena taking 17 and Venus seven. They have also been credited with introducing more of a power game to womens tennis, and of inspiring players from minority communities to take up the sport. "Weve had such a great impact," said Serena Williams. "I think having been pretty much one of the first African-Americans to do well, then to see all the African-Americans, even some Canadians here playing really well, it makes me feel really good. "Im really excited to see that. We just had an opportunity to do something really special. Sometimes I get chill bumps when I think about it because were just so normal and so down-to-earth. We just feel like we want to help everyone to do the best that they can." Serena Williams, the defending champion, extended her Rogers Cup win streak to 14 matches after victories at the 2011 and 2013 events in Toronto. She skipped the 2012 tournament. Wozniacki, coming off a win at Istanbul, ended an eight-match streak. The match that lasted two hours 41 minutes saw Wozniacki take control in the first set and build a 2-0 lead in the second before Williams started hitting the lines. "I was making a lot of unforced errors in general," said Williams. "But I just thought: Just keep fighting. Hopefully I can just hold on and hold on, try to break, keep going for each shot. " She broke service for a 3-2 first-set lead and fought off two break points to close the set. The third set featured five service breaks, the last giving Williams the win on her third match point. Williams is now 7-1 all-time against Wozniacki. Williams won at Stanford last week and has won seven straight matches. But she knew beating Wozniacki wouldnt be easy. "Especially when you play someone like Caroline or other opponents, you know your match might be a little longer than normal," said Williams. "You go in there thinking: This is not going to be routine. Youre ready." Wozniacki was happy with her tournament despite the defeat. "It was really small things that did it out there today," she said. "She came up with quite a few big serves when she needed to. "It could have gone both ways. I had a break in the second set. Didnt manage to hold on. But I gave it everything I had. It just wasnt quite enough." Venus also needed time to find a rhythm against 14th-seeded Suarez Navarro. She has gone three sets in three of her four matches, including her third-round upset of sixth-seeded Angelique Kerber. "Whats happening well for me is just competing," said Venus Williams. "I think my movement has been very helpful to me, as well, covering a lot of court. "Ive been playing some stellar opponents, so it hasnt been easy." Discount Vans Trainers . The Broncos quarterback earned the offensive award Wednesday after passing for 374 yards and three touchdowns in a 37-21 win over the Raiders Monday night. Manning completed 32-of-37 passes and had a passer rating of 135. Cheap Vans Shoes For Sale . The Toronto Argonauts signed the veteran linebacker to a three-year deal Tuesday, hours after the start of CFL free agency. http://www.cheapvansdiscount.com/. -- The Denver Broncos locked up a shutdown cornerback, only his name wasnt Dominique Rodgers-Cromartie. Vans Shoes Sale . The two-time Olympic halfpipe gold medallist informed ESPN on Monday he plans to compete in Apsen, Colo. Wholesale Vans Authentic Shoes . This game was inside. Adrian Peterson was missing. The stage was set for another step toward the playoffs.SAN FRANCISCO -- Cody Asche took one look at the starting lineup and felt his confidence grow. Phillies manager Ryne Sandberg challenged him, and that was enough. Asche hit a two-run homer in the eighth inning to tie the game and then started the decisive rally with a double to open the 10th as Philadelphia rallied to beat the San Francisco Giants 5-3 on Friday night. "He saw something in me that made him want to put me in," Asche said. "I was confident just by the fact I was in there." Chase Utley was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the 10th and Ryan Howard followed with a sacrifice fly against Javier Lopez, snapping the Phillies three-game losing streak. Sandberg gave Andres Blanco the day off and went with Asche against Madison Bumgarner. "If you want a chance to become a regular player, you have to face lefties," Sandberg said. Asche connected against Jeremy Affeldt, who allowed his first home run this season, and doubled off Santiago Casilla (1-3) to set the stage for the winning rally. Ken Giles (2-0) pitched two scoreless innings, and Jonathan Papelbon worked the 10th for his 28th save in 31 chances. Bumgarner threw seven strong innings for his first quality start at home since June 10, a span of seven games. He allowed one run and four hits, striking out nine without a walk. "It was nice to pitch a good game at home," Bumgarner said. "Its been forever." Cole Hamels also delivered a quality start for Philadelphia, giving up three runs and nine hits over seven innings. He walked two and struck out five. Pablo Sandoval had three hits, but the Giants lost their sixth in seven games. Bumgarner retired the first 10 hitters he faced, five on strikeouts, before allowing back-to-back hits by Jimmy Rollins and Utley. Hamels let the leadoff hitter reach base in five innings and had baserunners every inning.dddddddddddd He was able to avoid trouble with the exception of the fourth. Buster Posey led off with a single and Sandoval hit a ground-rule double ahead of Michael Morses first home run in August, a three-run drive into the left-field seats. Marlon Byrd countered with his 23rd homer leading off the fifth. TRAINERS ROOM Phillies: OF John Mayberry Jr. continues to deal with inflammation in his left wrist. His recovery has been interrupted by minor setbacks following workouts. Giants: 1B Brandon Belt will get another opinion on his concussion when the Giants visit Chicago next week. Belt will see concussion specialist Michael Collins in Pittsburgh. UP NEXT Phillies: RHP Kyle Kendrick (5-11, 4.88 ERA) takes the mound Saturday afternoon. He is 1-3 in his past six starts and has an ERA of 6.98 over his last seven. Giants: RHP Tim Hudson (8-9, 2.81) pitches Saturday. The Giants have lost seven of his last 10 starts. Hudson has started 30 games against the Phillies and is 11-10 with a 3.60 ERA against them. BYRD IS THE WORD Giants third base coach Tim Flannery sent Sandoval home with two outs in the eighth on Joe Paniks single to right. Byrds throw to Carlos Ruiz was there in plenty of time, keeping the game tied. "Defence always comes first," Byrd said. "Im not always going to hit, and I take pride in my defence." Byrd also ran down Morses 400-foot fly in the second to the roomy area of the ballpark known as Triples Alley. COOL LIKE CARLTON Hamels had his streak of pitching at least seven innings and allowing no more than one earned run stopped at five games, one shy of matching the franchise record. Steve Carlton was the last Phillies pitcher to do it, in 1972. Grover Cleveland Alexander (1916) and Elmer Jacobs (1918) also accomplished the feat. ' ' '