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TORONTO -- Serena Williams insists its not as easy as it looks. The top-seeded American breezed to her third Rogers Cup title with a 6-2, 6-0 victory over unseeded Romanian Sorana Cirstea in Sundays final, giving Williams her eighth WTA title of the year and 54th of her career. She didnt drop a set all week at the $2.369-million tournament and lost only 22 games, almost half of which came against third-seed Agnieszka Radwanska in a semifinal match which proved to be the only real test for the world No. 1 in Toronto. With the absence of top-five players Maria Sharapova and Victoria Azarenka, and the early exit of Wimbledon champ Marion Bartoli, all due to injury, Williamss path to the title was made considerably less obstructed. But with expectation comes pressure, and Williams proved more than up to the task. "No tournament is ever easy, especially being in the position I am in," said Williams. "The tournament starts and they expect you to win. And the tournament is like, youre going to be in the final and after your semifinal I want you to do this, and you have to do this and this press. Who knows if Ill even make it to the semifinals? "Its a lot of pressure. Its not easy." Williams says she likes where her game it as heading towards the U.S Open, where she is the defending champion, and shell look to use this victory as momentum this week in Cincinnati. Despite only having lost one match since March, a stunning early exit at Wimbledon, Williams says theres still room for improvement. "For me its always about constantly improving and never saying I did great and I can be satisfied," she said. "I did great (today), but what can I do better? What can I improve on? Thats what I always strive for. "When I get satisfied, and for a lot of players, the (playing) level goes down." Cirstea, meanwhile, had a breakthrough tournament, having ousted two former world No. 1s in Jelena Jankovic and Caroline Wozniacki before dethroning defending champion Petra Kvitova in the quarters, then fourth-seed Li Na of China in the semifinals. She was appearing in only her third WTA final and looking to build on her only title, won way back in 2008 at Tashkent. "For me its been a really positive week and Im going to take everything that well to the next tournament," said Cirstea. Cirstea showed her nerves from the opening game, double faulting the first point and again at 30-40 to give Williams an early break. Williams broke again for 3-0 after Cirstea sent a backhand wide. That prompted a visit from her Australian coach Darren Cahill, who gave the 23-year-old a pep talk. It appeared to work momentarily as Cirstea won four straight points to break back and held serve at 3-2 to get back in the match. But Williams quickly removed any chance of an upset, winning two straight games and acing a set point winner for 6-2. "The start was not as bad as the scored showed," said Cirstea. "The first three games I had really good chances so I could have been up three-love. Suddenly I found myself down three-love. I know the score seems quite tough but there were moments when I felt the match was closer than it seemed." With shouts of "Sorana" and "Serena" volleying back and forth around the stadium like tennis balls, splashes of Romanias blue, yellow and red could be seen dotting the almost-full Rexall Centre stands on a warm, sunny afternoon. "I was surprised to see how many Romanians there were out there and how many flags Ive seen," said Cirstea. "It was an incredible atmosphere and it made me feel like home when they were screaming, supporting me and saying positive things. Im looking forward to coming back here." The vocal contingent cheering on Cirstea didnt have much to go on in the second set. Williams broke out of the gate using her trademark power strokes to keep Cirstea running and ripped a 199 km/h ace to hold serve at 2-0. Cirstea, with her head hanging low, again called over Cahill for motivation, but it did little this time as Williams eased through the final four games and wrapped up the match in just over an hour. Williams gets $426,000 for the win while Cirstea will take home $213,000 -- almost half her prize money earned so far this year. Cirstea teared up during the trophy presentation and graciously expressed her admiration for Williams. "Usually Im quite emotional," said the Romanian. "Of course I was disapointed because I wanted to play better, so its mixed feelings out there. I think even if I won today I would still be crying." All three of Williamss Rogers Cup titles have come in Toronto, the first in 2001 before winning it again in 2011. She says she loves playing in this city because of the friends who come out to see her play. Local hip-hop star Drake, who was also present for her 2011 win, sat courtside and cheered on Williams. "Were really good friends," said Williams, "I was excited that he made it today." In the doubles final, Jankovic and Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia won 5-7, 6-2, 10-6 over Anna-Lena Groenefeld of Germany and Czech Kveta Peschke. Radoslav Nesterovic Jersey . Canada is now down to its 22-player limit, although but players wont be registered until Christmas Day. Changes could still be made as a result of a suspension or injury. Shabazz Napier Jersey . Speaking Thursday on TSN 1050 Thursday, the Leafs GM also touched on the questions surrounding the teams leadership and the struggles of his big-name free-agent signing. “Its not from lack of effort from the coaching staff. https://www.cheaptimberwolves.com/420j-kevin-garnett-jersey-timberwolves.html .com) - Manchester City midfielder David Silva is expected to miss the next four weeks because of a calf problem. Rashad McCants Jersey . PETERSBURG, Fla. Isaiah Rider Jersey . - Oakland Raiders running back Rashad Jennings was speaking to a group of local high school students earlier this week when the conversation turned to the importance of being prepared when opportunities in life arise. KENT, Ohio -- Jimmy Hall scored 23 points and grabbed nine rebounds as Kent State beat Mississippi Valley State 93-63 on Wednesday night.Hall was 7 of 12 from the field and 9 of 11 from the free-throw line for the Golden Flash (2-0). Jaylin Walker added 14 points and Deon Edwin had 11. The team averaged 44.6 percent shooting from the field, 75 percent from the line and outrebounded MSVU 54-27.Before the game, Kent State players ventured into the home crowd and -- in a show of racial unity -- each brought a fan of aa different race courtside to stand with them for the national anthem.ddddddddddddAfter a back-and-forth battle in the latter part of the first half, Hall made a layup and a jumper on back-to-back possessions to secure a 37-31 lead for Kent State with 2:13 left. The Golden Flash led 41-31 at the break and led the rest of the way.Isaac Williams scored 17 points for the Delta Devils (0-3). ' ' '