It all comes down to North Carolina's Cydney Clanton versus the fourth seed Amelia Lewis in a 36-hole battle over Pinehurst No. 2 to claim the championship of the 107th North and South Women's Amateur Championship. The match is scheduled to start Saturday morning at 8 a.m.

Lewis, from Jacksonville, Fla., claimed a convincing 6 and 4 victory over Jaclyn Sweeney, while Clanton, the pride of the old North State, posted a 4 and 3 win over California's Lisa McCloskey in Friday's other semifinal match.

The two emerged from a field of 64 players that started match play competition on Tuesday.

In Friday's first semifinal match, Lewis got off to a steady start through her first five holes to build a 3-up lead over the ninth-seeded Sweeney. By the time the two reached the eighth hole, Lewis had grabbed a 5-up lead.

Then on the 275-yard par 4 12th hole, Lewis hit a bomb off the tee that landed on the green. The result was a two-putt birdie that put her 6-up, putting her in the driver's seat with just six holes remaining. After Sweeney made a four-foot birdie on hole 13 to extend the match, Lewis then closed things out with a birdie on the 14th hole to post the 6 and 4 win.

Lewis will be a freshman for the University of Florida's women golf team this fall. The 18-year-old future Gator said that the hot weather she played in during four matches on Thursday and Friday was really a non-factor for her.

"I know how to deal with the heat," Lewis said. "Where I am from I am used to it."

Judging from the way she got around Donald Ross' famed No. 2 on Friday afternoon it appears that she also knows how to deal with the heat of high pressure competition. Lewis consistently found the fairway with her driver and the greens with her irons, constantly applying pressure to her opponent during the match. In 15 holes she carded only one bogey, while posting three birdies.

"My driver was really working for me today," Lewis said. "It was both accurate and long. I also hit nearly every green, so I was giving myself plenty of birdie opportunities. While I did not make many putts, at the same time I was not giving anything up either, which is crucial in match play."

With her favorite all-time player being Payne Stewart, coupled with the fact that she loves Donald Ross considering that her first home course, San Jose Country Club, was designed by him, Lewis was all smiles after winning.

"I love everything about Pinehurst, the people the course, everything," she said. "With Payne being my favorite (player) this is, of course, the ultimate course I wanted to play. The greens out here are just amazing, so to be honest I am just thrilled to have made it this far."

While Lewis is happy she has come this far, she is still focused on claiming the Putter Boy trophy come Saturday afternoon

"I am very confident with the way I am playing right now," Lewis said. "Everything is working out about as well as I could hope with my game.

"Since this is my first North and South, I don't really know how it will be in the championship match. I have played with Cydney before and I know she is a great player but I am very confident and also think I am pretty good as well."

Clanton, the pride of the Tar Heel state who is a rising sophomore at Auburn University, said she was also accustomed to playing in the heat. One thing is for certain, Clanton's game was sizzling from the start of her match with seventh-seed McCloskey.

Hailing from Rockwell, Clanton had three birdies on the front nine, as well as a double eagle, a feat more difficult to accomplish then a hole in one. With a 1-up lead Clanton struck her second shot on the 482-yard par 5 fourth hole with a 5-iron from approximately 190 yards out. The ball finished up in the bottom of the cup, with the incredible shot giving her a 2-up advantage.

"It was like amazing," Clanton said when describing her first-ever double eagle. "I hit it so perfect, and it landed just on the green, then bounced once and rolled in. So it was pretty amazing."

From there, Clanton then birdied another hole to go 3-up in the match. In fact, aside from the double eagle, she birdied all of the other par 5s she played in the match, making her 6-under on the four par-5s Friday afternoon.

"I just hit the ball really well today," Clanton said, "and the way I performed on the par fives was a definite help. I was also hitting fairways and greens (the whole) round, which is key out here (on No. 2)"

As the twosome made the turn, Clanton still held her 3-up advantage. She then won holes 11 and 13 with pars to take a 5-up lead and bring the match to dormie. On the 400-yard par 4 14th, a McCloskey 10-foot par save extended the match to the par-3 15th, where a pair of conceded par putts brought the contest to a close, with Clanton prevailing 4 and 3.

After the win, Clanton seemed upbeat about her chances in Saturday's 36-hole final.

"I played a bit with Lewis when we were juniors," Clanton said, " and she is a solid player so it should be a good match. One thing is certain, it is going to be a long day -- 36 holes -- so you just have to take it one shot at a time and be patient out there."

Saturday's 36-hole championship match begins on the first tee of No. 2 at 8 am. The afternoon round is expected to start at approximately noon.

Contact F.W. Manning II at 639-5481 or by e-mail at frankwm2@gmail.com