Baker tennis teams dominate Nyssa, win 11 of 12 matches on road

A three-set grind from Liz Timm turned into the match that set the tone for Baker’s lopsided road win at Nyssa, where the Bulldogs won 11 of 12 matches and kept showing the kind of depth that can travel.

Timm outlasted Nyssa’s Hadee Wagstaff in a match that stretched two and a half hours on an 80-degree afternoon, a result that gave Baker an early jolt and reinforced a familiar pattern in the girls lineup. Kaitlyn Schwin followed with a straight-sets win over Alix Castillo, while Lilly Fields and Kaytee Zinn controlled girls doubles 6-1, 6-0. Jailey Ford and Payton Anderson added an 8-1 victory, giving Baker multiple reliable points across the draw.

Coach Amy Younger said the group handled the day well. “They all did great,” she said, and the score line backed it up.

The boys also took care of business, helping Baker turn the meet into a one-sided road result despite a spring schedule that has been squeezed by rain postponements. The Nyssa trip came in the middle of a crowded run that already included a tournament at Madras on April 4 and a meet against La Grande on April 6, with Ontario on the home schedule April 9 and Pendleton next on April 11. In a stretch like that, lineup management and staying fresh matter almost as much as shot-making.

That context makes the 11-of-12 showing more meaningful than a simple win total. Baker was not just better in one or two spots at Nyssa. The Bulldogs collected points across girls singles, girls doubles and the boys side, the kind of balanced performance that suggests the program is carrying dependable options from top to bottom as the season moves deeper into spring.

The matchup also carried a familiar name. Last year, Baker/Powder Valley won six of eight matches against Nyssa at the Ash Grove courts near Baker High School, and Timm again beat Wagstaff in a marathon, then by 5-7, 6-3, 7-5 in more than two hours. Two straight seasons of long, tight matches between those two have made that court feel like a measuring stick for how Baker handles pressure.

With the calendar still packed and more road time ahead, Baker’s win at Nyssa showed a team that can absorb a long duel, collect steady points from multiple pairings and keep building momentum when the season gets crowded.