Vinci vs. Pennetta: Score, Reaction from US Open Tennis 2015 Women's Final

Flavia Pennetta ended the dream run of Roberta Vinci in the 2015 U.S. Open women's final on Saturday with a marvelous 7-6, 6-2 win. 

Pennetta came into the final after her own semifinal upset against No. 2 seed Simona Halep, though it was less-talked about than Vinci's stunner over Serena Williams for obvious reasons. 

As the No. 26 seed, Pennetta becomes the second-lowest ranked player in the Open Era to win a major championship, per ESPN Stats & Info:

The turning point of Saturday's final came late in the first set. Vinci was up 5-4 with a chance to close things out, but Pennetta won the 10th game. The two traded games once again to force a tiebreak, which Pennetta would win, 7-4. 

According to ESPN Stats & Info, the first set has been critical for Pennetta at the U.S. Open throughout her career:

Pennetta went up 4-0 in the second set and closed things out before Vinci was able to really make things interesting. 

The win marks Pennetta's first in a major singles event after 15 years as a professional. She came into the U.S. Open seemingly lost, failing to advance past the second round in a tournament since the French Open. 

Despite those struggles, Pennetta said after her win over Halep on Friday that her focus has never drifted from the opponent on the other side of the court, per espnW.com's Melissa Isaacson (via ESPN.com). 

"I just tried to play every match I can from the first, tried not to think of the draw and go match by match," she said. "I tried to focus on what I had to do when I go on court, and here I am, so I'm really happy."

You could sense that Pennetta was able to put aside any distraction, while Vinci, 24 hours after defeating the best player in the sport, was battling an opponent playing really strong tennis. Athletes are often judged by their physical ability, but seven matches in two weeks and two high-pressure matches in two days takes an emotional toll. 

After her title win, Pennetta announced that this was going to be her last act in the sport, per U.S. Open Tennis:

In addition to being introduced as "U.S. Open champion" for the rest of her life, Pennetta will be collecting a nice paycheck for her efforts on Saturday (via ESPN's Darren Rovell):

Pennetta's strength against Vinci was her backhand, as she was able to consistently use power and accuracy with that particular shot, as evidenced in this first-set rally (via U.S. Open Tennis):

Even though Vinci came up short in this effort to finish off her tremendous U.S. Open run, it's not a disappointment. She became a worldwide star both for beating Williams and her honest, funny interview in which she "apologized" on the court afterward. 

The bond between Vinci and Pennetta, as friends and fellow countrywomen, was evident after the match, as seen in this picture (via Ben Rothenberg of the New York Times):

Vinci came into the match as everyone's Cinderella story, but Pennetta had her own incredible journey that makes her a deserving champion.

Pennetta will never be in this position again, walking away on top as the first Italian to win a singles title, so being able to finally have that one big breakthrough on the major-tournament stage puts an emphatic exclamation point on what was a very good 15-year career.