ATHENS, Ga. -- Another standout performance from Tennessee's do-everything midfielder Rylie O'Keefe helped lead the Volunteers to their third straight victory with a 2-0 shutout over Georgia on Thursday night in Athens.

O'Keefe tallied both goals for the Vols to record her first-career multi-goal game and her third multi-point performance of the year. The Big Orange (6-4, 2-1 SEC) were also stout defensively, posting their third consecutive shutout.

The Bulldogs (3-6-1, 0-3 SEC) had the better of the chances early on and nearly took the lead in the 11th minute after a bad giveaway by the Vols in their defensive third. Kathryn Culhane did a nice job to interfere with Lauren Tanner's shot to force it just wide of the open net and keep UGA off the board.

Hannah Wilkinson had the best chance in the first half for UT, heading a ball into the side netting from the corner of the six-yard box in the 25th minute. Starting goalkeeper Shae Yanez made a great save late in the half to keep the game scoreless and extend her shutout streak to 180 minutes this season. For the second straight game Yanez and Jamie Simmons split time in goal as Simmons entered at the start of the second half and finished the game.

Shots were hard to come by in the first 45 minutes, however, the pace of the game and the amount of chances increased substantially in the second half. The Vols registered 16 second-half shots, with nine of those on target, after only generating three shots in the opening frame.

It didn't take long for the Big Orange to open the scoring in the second half. O'Keefe scored her third goal of the season just over two minutes into the half to give the Vols a 1-0 lead. The Littleton, Colo., native pounced on a loose ball in the box and hammered it right under the bar for what would stand up to be the game-winner.

Just before O'Keefe scored her first goal, Anna Bialczak was robbed by Bulldogs' keeper Louise Hogrell, and a few minutes later, Bialczak nearly scored again but her header from the center of the box hit the crossbar.

Georgia had a great chance to tie things up with a free kick from close range, but Taylor Donohue's attempt was blocked by the wall of UT defenders.

Tennessee struck again in the 72nd minute on a perfectly placed ball off a corner kick from Michele Christy. O'Keefe, one of the shortest players on the field, rose above the defenders in the center of the box and headed home her second goal of the match to give the Orange and White a two-goal lead they would hold for the remainder of the game. With her two goal performance tonight, O'Keefe now leads the team in goals (four), assists (six) and points (14) this season.

Yanez and Simmons combined for the shutout for the second game in a row after making seven stops between the two of them. Despite the loss, Hogrell was stellar in goal for UGA, making eight saves on the night.

The Vols will look to extend their season-long win streak to four games on Sunday evening when they travel to Gainesville to take on No. 12/9 Florida. UT is a perfect 4-0 in Sunday games this season and can earn its first win over a ranked team since 2014 with a win over the Gators.

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