Arn takes Auckland championship

AUCKLAND, New Zealand, Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Greta Arn collected the second WTA title of her 15-year career Saturday with a 6-3, 6-3 win over Yanina Wickmayer at the ASB Classic in New Zealand.

Arn, a 31-year-old who turned pro in 1997, completed an impressive run with the win over Wickmayer, who was seeded second and was the tournament's defending champion.

Arn ousted eighth-seeded Sofia Arvidsson, saving five match points, in the second round and topped No. 1-seed Maria Sharapova in the quarterfinals before beating fourth-seeded Julia Goerges in the semifinals in earning her second career finals appearance.

Wickmayer may have been affected by a semifinal match Friday against Peng Shuai that lasted nearly three hours.

But Arn played well. She didn't lose her serve against Wickmayer and had three service breaks, including two in the first set, in winning a tournament for the first time since 2007. She picked up $37,000 along with the ASB Classic title.

Wickmayer is 3-3 in WTA title matches and won $19,000.