By Neil Schmidt
Enquirer staff writer

Lindsay Davenport extended her winning streak to 15 matches by holding off No. 137 Lilia Osterloh 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 Thursday at Mason. (Jeff Swinger photo)

MASON - It was an hour into the match when Lindsay Davenport finally caught up with one of her opponent's serves, ripping it for a winner. She raised her arms in mock triumph.

"That was the first time I felt like, 'Oh my gosh, I hit the ball well that point,' " Davenport said.

Suddenly, the rust rubbed away. Two games from a stunning defeat Thursday to 137th-ranked Lilia Osterloh, Davenport started swinging freely, with the form that had won her 14 consecutive matches.

Soon, she had a service break. Then she had won seven consecutive games, and the Western & Southern Financial Group Women's Open officials could breathe easier. Their No. 1 seed and top drawing card prevailed 4-6, 6-4, 6-1 in her Cincinnati debut, advancing to a quarterfinal matchup tonight with seventh seed Flavia Pennetta.

"I felt a little bit sluggish, and (I) wasn't hitting the ball cleanly," Davenport said. "... Once I was able to get that break to go up 5-4 in the second, I felt that I had some momentum and ... I could be more aggressive and more sure of my shots."

Lately, she had been not only aggressive, but untouchable. She has won 15 consecutive matches and is pursuing a fourth straight tournament title.

Yet this was the first time in 11 matches Davenport has dropped a set. Down 6-4, 4-3, Davenport was in danger of becoming the first top seed to lose before the quarterfinals in Cincinnati's women's professional tennis history, which spans 76 tournaments.

Davenport, ranked No. 4 in the world and 46-6 on the year, had lost just once in 2004 to a player ranked outside the top 15 - Claudine Schaul, who was No. 66 at the time.

"Sometimes this happens - first match, only got to practice here the one day, on the East Coast, little bit different conditions," Davenport said. "It's really just how you deal with it. I was really happy I was able to turn it around."

That she did. Davenport didn't face a break point in the second or third sets. She totaled 26 winners, 12 aces and five service winners.

"It may have looked close during the second set, but when she stepped it up, she pretty much took control," said Osterloh, a native of Groveport, Ohio.

Osterloh had won 10 of 13 matches coming in and dictated the pace early.

"She definitely played above what her ranking shows her at," Davenport said. "She's a good player. Sometimes you're a little bit caught off guard with the level of an opponent that you play."

E-mail nschmidt@enquirer.com