PARIS (Reuters) - World number one Martina Hingis had her prayers answered Sunday when she moved into the quarter-finals of the French Open to find fifth seed Venus Williams no longer in her path.

Not that Hingis needed any divine intervention in her fourth round clash with Ruxandra Dragomir,dispatching the Romanian in straight-forward fashion 6-3, 7-6.

But the Swiss teen-ager revealed later that she had visited the Sacre Coeur basilica, one of Paris's most famous churches, and lit a candle asking God if he could keep her way clear of the power-hitting Williams sisters, Venus and Serena.

While Austrian qualifier Barbara Schwartz's upset 2-6, 7-6, 6-3 victory over Venus Williams may not qualify as a miracle, it did open up an easier road to the final for Hingis in her quest to win the only Grand Slam title to elude her.

``I think the little candle in the church of Sacre Coeur helped,'' said Hingis, who had earlier seen Serena Williams removed from her path by American Mary Joe Fernandez in the third round.

``When I saw the draw and saw both of them (Venus and Serena) on my side (of it), I knew I would really have to work to beat them. Now both of them are out of the draw.

``It's not a joke, it's true.

``You pay however much you want, then you take a big candle or just a little one. I took a middle one.''

The 20-year-old Schwartz overturned the form book in her victory over Williams. ''It's a good win for her, I guess a good win for Austria,'' conceded Williams. ``Usually when I lose a match, I really beat myself.

``But this time I really think she came out and played.''

On the other side of the draw, second seed Lindsay Davenport kept pace with her Swiss rival, advancing with a tidy 6-2 6-3 win over American compatriot Jennifer Capriati.

After struggling to get past 16-year-old Belgian Justine Henin and unknown Colombian Fabiola Zuluaga, Davenport produced her easiest win of the first week, needing just 62 minutes to dispose of a rejuvenated Capriati.

Capriati, who appears to have finally put her troubled past behind her, ran into big problems on court as Davenport used her superior power to lethal effect.

``I think my level of play definitely rose today, which is what I needed to do.'' said Davenport. ``It was nice to play someone who gave me some pace and someone I knew had to attack the ball.''

Steffi Graf, Monica Seles and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicaro, who between them have won all but one of the women's French Open titles since 1987, advanced easily to the last eight.

Graf, the sixth seed, displaying some of the form that took her to five French crowns, beat Russian teenager Anna Kournikova 6-3, 7-6 while third seed Seles, a three-time winner, downed final French hope Julie Halard-Decugis 6-1, 7-6.

Seventh seed Sanchez-Vicario had the easiest route to the final eight, securing her place when Fernandez was forced to pull out with a thigh injury, giving her a walkover.

In a battle of unseeded Spaniards, Conchita Martinez, three times a semifinalist in Paris, made it through with a 6-2, 6-1 win over Gala Leon Garcia.