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 The 23-year-old American raced out to a 5-2 lead before Vesnina,
the 2011 Charleston finalist, used a slew of winners to win four
consecutive games before moving within one point of winning the
opening set.
Stephens, however, held her nerve producing some of her best tennis
in the tiebreak before cruising through the second set.
"I just said to myself, 'You have to fight for every point and
compete.' She's a great player, so I knew I had to stay in every
point," said Stephens.
"When I got a couple of opportunities, I took them, so that was
great."
 The win marked the fourth career WTA title for an in-form Stephens,
who has been close to her best for nearly a year after winning her
maiden title in Washington last August followed by wins this year in
Auckland and Acapulco.
Stephens, who was 1-5 in Charleston before this week, had two
straight-set wins to open the tournament and then saved a match
point against rising Russian teen Daria Kasatkina in the
quarter-finals.
She faced defending champion Angelique Kerber in the semi-finals
where she had a 6-1 3-0 lead before the top-seeded German retired
with a viral illness.
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Vesnina had caught fire on the unique green clay courts of
Charleston where she arrived as the world number 85 and having won
two matches in the qualifying.
En route to becoming the first qualifier to make the Charleston
final in the tournament's 44 years, Vesnina upset Switzerland's
Belinda Bencic in the second round and Italy's Sara Errani in the
semis.
(Reporting by Frank Pingue in Toronto. Editing by Steve Keating.)
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