It was a defensive slugfest Friday night in the PMAC between LSU and Tennessee – two of the best defenses in the Southeastern Conference. But it was LSU’s offensive outburst in the final two sets that propelled the Tigers (7-3) to a five set victory against the Lady Vols, 3-2 (31-29, 23-25, 22-25, 25-12, 15-11) in front of 1,303 Tiger fans, the tenth largest crowd in LSU history. LSU senior outside hitter Marina Skender paced the offense for the Tigers, racking up 19 kills to go along with 16 digs. With the victory, LSU is earned their first Friday victory of the season after losing their first three Friday matches to start the season. LSU also improved to 2-2 in five set matches this season. ”Tennessee is a great team,” Flory said. “We knew they were good, but they were very good; that was an absolute war tonight. Our kids did a great job of persevering. We lost a lot of little battles, but overall we won the war.” The Tigers had fallen behind, 2-1, heading into the fourth set but was able to outscore the Lady Vols, 45-23, in the final two sets. LSU had an 83 percent (10-of-12) and 75 percent (9-of-12) sideout efficiency in the final two sets, respectively, thanks in part to the defensive help of sophomore libero Lauren Waclawczyk, who had a career-high 26 digs, and freshman defensive specialist Sam Delahoussaye, who added on 13 digs. In total, the Tigers had 101 digs and 12 blocks on the night. But the offensive outburst was sparked by the play of junior outside hitter Angela Bensend, who had four kills in the final set. ”Angela Bensend was the key to the match in the last two sets for us.” Flory said. “She hasn’t been feeling very well, so we were trying to protect her a little bit, but what a great performance. I couldn’t be more proud of her.” In a long first set that included a yellow card for Tennessee coach Rob Patrick, neither team seemed willing to want the early advantage, as the teams combined for 10 service errors. The set went back and forth with neither team commanding more than a three point lead. Skender led the Tigers with five kills in the set, while Tennessee held senior middle blocker Brittnee Cooper to two kills and a .000 hitting percentage. In the second set, LSU started early with an 8-0 run to take a 9-5 lead after falling behind, 2-5. But the Lady Vols crept back into the match slowly, taking a 16-15 lead before finally taking the set, 25-23. Tennessee (6-4) kept their second set momentum in hand in a close third set, eventually taking the set, 25-22. However, LSU shut down the Tennessee momentum with a dominating 25-12 win in the fourth set. The Tigers hit .275 in the set while holding the Lady Vols to a .000 hitting percentage. The Tigers will return to action Sunday to face Kentucky (10-1) at 2:00 p.m. in the PMAC.   —-Contact Andy Schwehm at [email protected]