CAPRIATI NAILS IT HOME SHE'S ONLY AMERICAN TO MAKE SEMIS.

Byline: Lauren Gustus Staff Writer

Jennifer Capriati finally took the advice of a noisy fan in her last round-robin match: ``Put her away, Jenny.''

After three see-saw sets, and on her fifth match point, Capriati did so with a line-drive serve into Anastasia Myskina's body that went unreturned.

With the 7-5, 5-7, 6-4 victory over the Russian at the WTA Championships at Staples Center on Saturday, Capriati advanced to today's semifinals where she will play No. 1 Kim Clijsters.

Amelie Mauresmo of France will play Justine Henin-Hardenne in the day's other semifinal.

For a time it seemed no American would reach the semifinals of the $3 million, year-end event. After Chanda Rubin, just two points away from a semifinal berth, blew a 6-4, 5-2 lead against Elena Dementieva in the day's first match, it looked as though Capriati might similarly implode.

Capriati, ranked No. 3, nearly returned a 5-1 lead in the third set - Myskina won three games to get to 5-4 - but Capriati clamped down to get the final two games.

Relieved when she won the first, agitated when she lost the second, Capriati smiled and tossed tennis balls into the stands, thanking the crowd for its support after she hung on in front of an announced crowd of 8,021.

Capriati, bothered by a strained right-hip flexor, said she was about 80 percent healthy during her 1 hour, 57 minute match. She moved better than she did the night before in a straight-set loss to Henin-Hardenne.

``The more I can pull these matches out, the more confidence I'll get,'' Capriati said. ``Hopefully, I will know how to close it out sooner.''

While Capriati's match played on, irony spilled out of the speakers above the court, to the tune of the Edgar Winter Group's ``Free Ride.''

Mauresmo, as the JumboTron pointed out, qualified for the semifinals when Dementieva defeated Rubin 4-6, 7-5, 6-1. Both Mauresmo and Rubin had one win and two losses in the red group. But Mauresmo won more sets, which was the tiebreaker. A free ride, indeed.

Mauresmo was all but on the way to the airport, to catch a flight back home to France. Instead, the top-four seeds advanced to today's semifinals.

Dementieva became the last player to qualify for the championships' 16- player draw last year, when Mauresmo pulled out due to inflamed cartilage in her right knee. Although she had returned the favor, Dementieva still expected at least a thank-you note from Mauresmo.

``Last year I was here because she was injured,'' Dementieva said. ``But I'm waiting for something in the mail.''

Rubin's collapse was quick; she dropped 11 of the last 12 games to lose the second and third sets. Dementieva spoiled Rubin's semifinal bid by keeping her running on the baseline, after her trademark flat shots. She had 40 winners to Rubin's 20.

The Russian, No. 6, went nearly the entire tournament without winning a set after losses to Kim Clijsters and Amelie Mauresmo. Dementieva earned $100,000 for her fourth-place finish in the red group.

Although Ai Sugiyama was already eliminated, she scored an upset over recently crowned No. 1 Henin-Hardenne in the final match of the afternoon, 6-2, 6-4. Henin-Hardenne became the world's No. 1 after she qualified for the semifinals with a victory Friday night over Capriati.

``No one wants to lose after you become the No. 1 player in the world,'' Sugiyama said.

Martina Navratilova, at 47 the oldest remaining player in the tournament by 17 years, will play her first match today, with doubles partner 18-year- old Svetlana Kuznetsova.