The Oral Roberts University volleyball team won both matches on its opening day against Dayton and Baylor today at the Long Beach State Mizuno Invitational in Long Beach, Calif.

ORU beat Dayton in five games (24-30, 30-26, 28-30, 30-27, 15-9) and followed with a four-game victory over Big XII foe Baylor (25-30, 30-25, 30-21, 30-28).

Patricia Menezes led the Golden Eagles with 16 kills in the evening match against Baylor. Teammate Ivana Placko gathered 15 kills on 23 attempts with no errors for a .652 hitting percentage. Anna Moreno dished out 48 assists in the match.

"I couldn't be happier with our season start," Head Coach Amy Farber Knowles said. "The Baylor match was a great win because they are in our region and it helps get us a good seed early. It also gives our girls some confidence."

Menezes started the day with a 20-kill match against Dayton. She also collected 13 digs, two service aces and three block assists.

Moreno had 57 assists in the Dayton match, moving her up to second place on the ORU all-time career list in assists. She totaled 105 assists on the day, giving her 2,725 for her career. Moreno also had three service aces and 14 digs against Dayton.

Other highlights from the game against Dayton included April Syko's 16 digs and 15 kills and Becky Dreher's 28 digs. Lindsey Engel and Celeste Jones collected 10 kills each.

Menezes moved up the ORU all-time charts in digs. She had 20 digs on the day, giving her 957 for her career.

"This team is capable of doing great things," Farber Knowles said. "You reap what you sow. Some of these girls have been sowing for four years now and it's time to reap the benefits. The girls got a glimpse of that today."

The ORU volleyball team is back in action tomorrow as they face #5 Long Beach State at 4 p.m. CT.