Bulldogs beat La Grande to open GOL play

Sep. 16—Every time a spike hit the hardwood floor or caromed wildly off a La Grande player's forearms, the roar from the Baker student section swelled by a couple decibels.

With senior Jozie Ramos, the reigning Greater Oregon League volleyball player of the year leading the way, the Bulldogs opened defense of their GOL title with a four-set win over the Tigers in the boisterous Baker gym on "blackout night" Thursday, Sept. 15.

Spectators were encouraged to don black clothing as Baker, ranked third in the state, improved to 7-2 overall with a 25-21, 25-18, 19-25, 25-13 win.

"Our girls gave a solid performance to start league play," Baker coach Ali Abrego said.

"They worked really hard to overcome the rivalry pressures, in order to secure a win. We typically struggle with the mental aspect of playing La Grande, and I thought our girls adapted well to that."

The Tigers (2-8 overall) were looking to avenge a loss to Baker in a tournament at La Grande on Aug. 27.

The Bulldogs started fast on Thursday, taking a 5-1 lead in the first set.

But with La Grande senior Makenna Shorts serving, the Tigers scored seven straight points and prompted Abrego to call the match's first timeout.

La Grande extended the run to 10 straight points to lead 11-5, but Baker then scored five straight to get to within 11-10.

The rest of the set was a nailbiter.

Baker regained the lead at 17-16, and it was tied at 17, 19, 20 and 21.

The Bulldogs scored the final four points, two on Ramos kills, to take the first set.

The second set followed a similar pattern.

Baker scored the first six points but the Tigers battled back to lead 10-9. The Bulldogs dominated the rest of the set, winning 25-18.

The Tigers flipped the script in the third set, scoring the first six points and extending the lead to 12-1.

Baker rallied, getting as close as 15-13 on a five-point run with Ramos serving. But the Tigers responded with five straight points to take control of the set.

The final set was close early, with the teams swapping the lead.

Baker pulled away in the middle of the set, prompting La Grande coach Melinda Becker-Bisenius to call timeout with the Bulldogs leading 17-11. The intermission didn't stop Baker's momentum, though, and the Bulldogs rolled the rest of the set.

"The first and second sets were a good example of setting the tone of the match," Abrego said. "It is very hard to sweep a team, especially one where tensions are high. In the third set, we made too many mistakes, and there is a big difference between losing and being beat, which is something we are focusing on. I was proud of how we bounced back in the fourth set, making those corrections to eliminate our own errors, 25-13 was a great way to finish."

Abrego said Ramos, Jayden Whitford and Makenzie Flanagan all had standout performances. Taylor Churchfield had a strong match serving, and Taylor Dalton played great defense.

"The great thing about our team is that our efforts are collective," Abrego said. "Aside from their athletic talents, I am most proud of my girls for their character off of the court. They are not easily influenced by outside circumstances and are truly a great group of girls to be around."

Baker has the weekend off before embarking on a busy week — with a lot of driving — starting Monday, Sept. 19 at Nyssa at 5 p.m. PDT.

The Bulldogs then travel to Homedale, Idaho, on Wednesday, Sept. 21 for a 3:30 p.m. PDT match, and the next day they'll head to Pendleton for a 6:30 p.m. match.

Baker returns home on Tuesday, Sept. 27 for a 6:30 p.m. match against Vale.

In Thursday's other matches at BHS, La Grande won both the JV match, 25-23, 26- 24, 25-22, and the JV2 match, 25-21, 25-19.