BATON ROUGE, La. - The LSU Soccer team (8-5-1, 3-3-0 SEC) defeated the Tennessee Volunteers (6-3-4, 1-2-3 SEC) by a score of 1-0 on Sunday afternoon at the LSU Soccer Stadium for the first time in the regular season since 2011.

LSU took the lead on a point blank shot inside the box from Ava Galligan on a feed from Rammie Noel in the 51st minute. Goalkeeper Mollee Swift led the Tigers defensively, producing seven saves and recording a clean sheet despite the Volunteer's efforts.

"We talked before the game about giving the fans something to cheer about, and I thought the players in the second half certainly did that," said head coach Sian Hudson after the game. "I want to give the fans a big shout out. It was amazing to have the band and the atmosphere was amazing."

"Overall, I'm just really pleased to keep a clean sheet. We bossed the second half and our defensive discipline was huge in this game," added Hudson. "Earning three points from this match was crucial."

The opening 25 minutes of the game was dominated by the Volunteers, with Tennessee producing seven shots on goal by the 23rd minute of the game. LSU goaltender Mollee Swift made her first save on the day on a shot from Tennessee forward Kameron Simmonds in the second minute of the game.

In the 6th minute of the game Tennessee forward Kate Runyon forced Swift to make a save, followed immediately by a second shot from Runyon that was saved by LSU defender Caley Swierenga.

Swift collected two more saves against Runyon in the 10th and 12th minute of the game. In the 18th and 23rd minutes Tennessee had their seventh and eighth shots of the game, produced by midfielder Jenna Stayart and defender Maria Nelson.

Following an offensive push from Tennessee, LSU forward Sage Glover notched the Tiger's first shot on target in the 31st minute with a shot to the bottom right that was saved by Volunteer keeper Abigail Reisz.

Tennessee threatened one final time in the first half in the 44th minute, but the scoring chance was called offside. Neither team could find the advantage as the Tigers and the Volunteers entered halftime scoreless. Tennessee won the possession battle in the first half with nine shots compared to LSU's one. Swift recorded six saves in the first half with the team producing one other save.

"Mollee Swift had some big saves for us in the first half," said Hudson.

The start of the second half began with the Tigers scoring the first goal of the match in the 51st minute. LSU forward Rammie Noel sent a cross into the box that found midfielder Ava Galligan, who scored on a point blank shot to give the Tigers the 1-0 lead on the day. It was Galligan's second goal of her career and Noel's third assist of the year.

In the 53rd minute, Tiger forward Mollie Baker delivered a heatseeker shot off the crossbar, but couldn't find the back of the net. LSU saw another scoring chance as Galligan forced a breakaway on an intercepted pass in the 57th minute, but failed to score as Volunteer defender Lawson Renie tallied the save.

LSU kept the pressure on in the second half with another strong shot from Baker in the 63rd minute, this one saved by a magnificent diving effort from Volunteer goaltender Ally Zazzara. Following a corner kick, Tiger midfielder Jaden Humbyrd produced her own power shot that was answered by another diving save from Zazzara.

Baker had her third strong shot of the game at the 76th minute mark, this time from the center of the box, but yet again Zazzara had an answer to the LSU forward.

Tennessee could not muster a response in the final 14 minutes of the match and the final whistle blew with LSU claiming a 1-0 win. The Volunteers outshot the Tigers by a margin of 13-11, with the Volunteers also edging the Tigers on shots on goal with a margin of 8-7.

While Tennessee opened the match strong, LSU's defense was able to prevail with a clean sheet performance that earned the Tigers their first win in the regular season versus Tennessee since 2011 and their fifth victory all time over the Volunteers.

"I'm absolutely thrilled for Ava Galligan to get a goal. We challenged her after the South Carolina game. She has fantastic finishing ability," said Hudson. "It was great to see her bundle that one in, and she had another great opportunity when she rounded the goalkeeper."

Following an aggressive first half, LSU came out for the second half with a different energy. LSU had ten second half shots compared to their single shot in the first half.

"I thought Mollie Baker had some fantastic shots from outside the box, one of them almost snapped the crossbar in half," added Hudson.

The Tigers return to action on the road in Tuscaloosa against No. 13 Alabama on Friday, Oct. 13 at 7 p.m. CT on SEC Network Plus.