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CHARLESTON, S.C. -- Andrea Petkovic remembered why she started playing tennis and along the way gave everyone else a reminder about how talented she is when shes at her best. The 26-year-old from Germany, who fell from ninth in the world in 2011 to 177th two years later, capped a stunning run to the Family Circle Cup title on Sunday, Petkovics first win in three years. She outlasted Jana Cepelova 7-5, 6-2 in the finals. "I just wanted to get back to why I started playing tennis, because I had fun playing it and because I love the sport," said Petkovic, whose progresses was slowed by several injuries that cost her much of 2012. The climb back was painful at times. Petkovic wanted to quit the game after falling in French Open qualifying last year and wondered if shed ever feel success at the sport again. So she decided to play for fun and not for the wins. "I just needed to remind myself and it came together this week, and Im very thrilled about that," she said. Petkovic entered this one seeded 14th, ranked 40th in the world and with few expectations about her first clay-court event of the season. Instead, Petkovics powerful forehand and grind-it-out mindset helped her oust three straight top 10 seeds in No. 4 Sabine Lisicki, No. 9 Lucie Safarova and No. 6 Eugenie Bouchard on the way to the finals. Petkovic used that same formula against Cepelova, a rising 20-year-old from Slovakia competing in her first WTA final. Cepelova led 5-4 and was a point away from capturing the first set. But Petkovic rallied to win that game and begin a run of eight in a row to take control of the match. "I have to let loose and play like I can," she told herself. Petkovic was energized after winning the crucial game and quickly broke serve to move in front. She took the set a game later and continued her run to build a 5-0 lead that Cepelova could not overcome. For Petkovic, the victory was more gratifying than her two other career WTA wins because of all her struggles. This "is a different feeling," she said. "Now, Im much more grateful. Its more rewarding." Petkovic dropped to the ground when Cepelovas final shot landed out of play. She jogged to the net to hug her opponent, waved to the crowd and did a celebration dance as fans applauded. She let her fun side shine through all week. She joked in postgame comments she might get a bit crazy on the flight back home, dancing with flight attendants and drinking champagne from her latest trophy. "Im going to have champagne and I dont even drink champagne," she said. "But Im going to have it for the heck of it." Petkovic earned $120,000 for her third career WTA victory, which was her first since winning in Strasbourg in 2011. Petkovics victory closed a week of surprises at the Family Circle Tennis Center. Only one of the tournaments top 10 seeds made it through to the final four and it was the first time a WTA tournament included three semifinalists 20 years old or younger since Amelia Island in 2008. Cepelova had a stunning run of her own, topping world No. 1 Serena Williams on Tuesday night to set the stage for plenty more unexpected results. Cepelova became the Family Circle Cups first unseeded finalist since Elena Vesnina in 2011. Cepelova didnt expect a long visit here, arriving without her coach, trainers and hitting partners. She typically ordered room service at the hotel and had to scrape around to find hitting partners to warm up before matches. "Before the tournament, if somebody told me youll be in the tournament finals I would not believe them," Cepelova said with a smile. "But it was a really nice week." Cepelova is also projected to move up some 30 spots in the rankings to around 50th in the world when the new list comes out next week, the WTA said. Petkovic won the title in her second appearance here. She had reached the round of 16 last year, but had to withdraw from a match against Caroline Wozniacki. She was on the phone with her father, Zoran, after the win. Father and daughter now have Palmetto State success in common. Zoran Petkovic was one of the leading singles players at the University of South Carolina in the early 1980s. He told his daughter stories of how Americans on campus loved wearing "cowboy boots and blue jeans," she recalled, laughing. "He was very happy, very emotional," Andrea Petkovic said of their phone call. "I dont know if he was tearing up, though." Jerseys For Sale Outlet . Sources tell TSN Hockey Insider Darren Dreger that the team is quietly gauging interest on the Senators captain, though Spezza has a limited no-trade clause and carries a large contract. Cheap Jerseys For Sale . -- The Sacramento Kings have claimed forward Travis Outlaw off waivers under the NBAs new amnesty provision, filling out the frontcourt with another veteran. https://www.jerseysforsalechina.com/.James scored 29 points, including 16 in the first quarter, and the Cleveland Cavaliers broke a four-game losing streak with a 106-74 win over the Orlando Magic on Monday night. Wholesale Jerseys For Sale . 1 Pete Sampras. Speaking ahead of an exhibition match against Andre Agassi in London on March 3, Sampras said on a conference call Wednesday that he is impressed by Federers longevity. Authentic Jerseys For Sale . A broadcast source said the deal is for five years. The agreement calls for a minimum of 17 regular-season games as well as the East and West Division finals being broadcast annually on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNEWS.CHICAGO -- Tom Sermanni coached the U.S. womens soccer team to a 2-0 win over China in Colorado in the afternoon. By evening, he was out of a job. Sermanni was fired by the U.S. Soccer Federation on Sunday after a disappointing finish last month at the Algarve Cup. The surprising move came just 16 months after he was put in charge. The dismissal was announced hours after Lauren Holiday and substitute Megan Rapinoe scored in the exhibition victory over China in Commerce City, Colo. "We felt that we needed to go in a different direction at this time," USSF President Sunil Gulati said. He said the federation will begin looking for a new coach immediately, with the team looking toward qualifying for the 2015 Womens World Cup. On Monday, a message on goalkeeper Hope Solos Twitter account addressed the firing: "Its a sombre day for us all today. Tom is simply a classy man in every way, and he will certainly be missed." Jill Ellis, the USSFs director of development, will serve as interim coach. She went 5-0-2 in that role in 2012. The womens team faces China again on Thursday in San Diego. "I was completely blindsided," Sermanni told SI.com on Sunday night. "Maybe Im losing my intuitive and perception skills, but I didnt sense a real unease in the team. But I could be wrong in that regard." Sermanni said he assumes there was "some degree of dissatisfaction among the players, otherwise we wouldnt have gotten to this point so quickly now." He added that the players did what he asked and he has "no qualms with them in the sense of having poor relations with them." He was hired in October 2012, but Ellis served as interim coach until he took over that January. Sermanni made his debut in a 4-1 win over his native Scotland on Feb. 10, 2013. He spent the previous eight years coaching Australias womens team, leading the Matildas to the quarterfinals of the last two World Cups. Sermanni helped the U.S. to a 13-0-3 record laast year, but the Americans went 1-2-1 at the Algarve Cup, the last major tournament for the U.dddddddddddd.S. before qualifying for next years World Cup. The seventh-place finish included a 1-0 defeat to Sweden and former U.S. coach Pia Sundhage, ending a two-year, 43-game unbeaten streak. That was the first loss following a 16-0-4 start under Sermanni. "To put it in a nutshell, they just felt that the way I was managing the team wasnt working," Sermanni told SI.com. "It could be the U.S. team is a unique team that has certain demands that perhaps my management style or my philosophy didnt quite jell with." His firing came about six months before North and Central American and Caribbean World Cup qualifying, which takes place from Oct. 16-26 at Cancun and Playa del Carmen, Mexico. On Sunday, Sermanni experimented with a 4-3-3 alignment (four defenders, three midfielders and three forwards) and talked about the team making the most of its offensive opportunities. "I thought our movement was good, thought our passing was quite incisive," Sermanni said. "What we shouldve done better is finish the game off a lot earlier. We really need to be finishing these games off when were creating chances." The U.S. outshot China 23-1 and ran its unbeaten streak on home turf to 81 games (71-0-10). Holiday was back in the lineup after missing the Algarve Cup because of a family commitment. She scored in the 39th minute -- the U.S. finally solving goalkeeper Zhang Yue after a flurry of shots. Holiday nearly had another goal early in the second half, only to have it deflected near the goal line. The defence allowed only one scoring chance to China, which played defensively even after falling behind. "The most important thing is coming together now and figuring out what works and what doesnt," forward Sydney Leroux said. "Were getting better every single day." Any further improvement will come under a new coach. ' ' '