NEW YORK - She is the 17-year-old who's causing all the racket. Last year, Melanie Oudin was an obscure name, ranked 221st in the world.

The pint-sized player was ranked 70th when she hit the courts of the U.S. Open last week. But that was before her victory over the number 13-seed Nadia Petrova Monday and before she brought down Maria Sharapova, a 3-time Grand Slam champion.

"I screamed after I hit that last shot," Oudin recalled at a post-match news conference. "It's just an unbelievable feeling."

Her next stop: the quarterfinals.

"Melanie has presence," said ESPN analyst Bud Collins. "Melanie has moves and she is always where she ought to be to hit the ball."

Her friends back in Marietta have been watching this Georgia peach go to work in the Big Apple, where she continues to swat big players like flies.

"It's such a close match every time," said Oudin's friend, Alicia Katz. "But every time she pulls it off -- and it's just great because you see her here every day, always working out, always doing her drills."

Oudin's twin sister Katherine knows all about her hard work and has watched it pay off from center court.

"That's why my sister was crying because she can't believe her twin sister is in the quarters of the U.S. Open," Melanie Oudin said.

Her Cinderella story is considered a success for American tennis, which is looking for fresh faces to follow in the footsteps of the Williams sisters.

"It's great for the future of tennis in America," said Gordon Smith, executive director of the USTA.

There are big expectations for her five-foot, six-inch frame. Anything is considered possible for this teen who has the word "believe" inscribed on her "sole."

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