Americans Nancy Drake and Marilyn Micciche, unknown, unranked and unpretentious, continued their march towards the final of the Ladies Doubles Open competition at the Coral Beach Club Invitational yesterday when they came from a set down to upset second seeds Barbara Lambert and Lavern Stowe 6-7 (7-3), 6-4, 6-3 in a contest that would have raised the standard of any final.

The local pair had made the visitors work for every point, and on several occasions held the upper hand. But that was not the way the action started.

Drake, the sister of Ted Hoehn who won last week's Men's 55 singles title, and Micciche, actually jumped off to a 3-0, 4-1 and 5-3 lead in the first set before losing four the next five games, and with them, the first set. The second set started similarly to the first, with the visitors forging an early break. Lambert and Stowe broke back in the fourth game to level the score at 2-2, but the Americans hit back to break Stowe for a 3-2 lead and when Nancy held in the sixth game for a 4-2 lead, the writing appeared on the wall.

Once the third set got underway and the match was level at 1-1 the heavens opened and flooded the courts causing a three-hour delay.

"That gave us a chance to regain our composure," said Micciche, "Because we were playing two very good players and we needed some relief."

After the rain break Drake and Micciche saved two break points to level the deciding set a 1-1 and they saved another break point in the fourth game to keep abreast at 2-2.

Then the real break came.

The American pair fought off three game points in the fifth game to break Stowe for a 3-2 lead, but were unable to hold on because Stowe and Lambert came back to break Drake in the sixth game to level the set at 3-3.

That was when the visitors turned their game up a notch and became more aggressive at the net, attacking at every opportunity. This new tactic, so late in the match, caught the local pair off guard and before they could rebound they had been bundled out of the tournament, losing two of the next three games and the match 6-7, 6-4, 6-3.

Drake and Micciche finished the match with a break of Stowe's serve, the second time in the game.

"We played a couple of formidable opponents," said Micciche. "They moved us around quite a bit and I will certainly sleep well tonight."

Her partner, Drake, said they had to do something and they decided during the rain break "that we had to become more aggressive by trying to put the ball away every opportunity, rather than trying to place it."

Lambert noticed this immediately and when asked what happened in that deciding set, she said simply: "They took the net, and without that we couldn't do anything.

"With only one of us at the net, we were constantly on the move because we were out of position so often, and being the experienced players they are, they took advantage of it."

Meanwhile, there was action aplenty in the Men's Open doubles competition where Greg Frigerio and Courtland Boyle defeated Eugene Simmons and Vernal Davis in straight sets 6-2, 6-3, while Michael and Brian Way defeated Stuart Smith and Dave Hyland 6-2, 6-2. Michael Curry and James Collieson eased past John Johnson and Larry Samuels 6-1, 6-0, while Roger Marshall and Andy Bray ousted Earl Leader and Eldon Daniels 6-1, 6-2.

More exciting games, especially in the Mixed doubles, will be on tap today as the finals of the doubles competition are expected to be played tomorrow, weather permitting.