The Lady Vols' dreams of another unlikely run at the SEC Championship vanished with one goal.

Tennessee gave up the only goal of the match against top-seeded Florida in double-overtime, dropping their opening match in the SEC Tournament, 1-0.

"This was a very disappointing loss," Lady Vols head coach Angela Kelly said to UTladyvols.com. "Credit Florida because they figured out a way to put the ball in the back of the net. I thought both teams had quality chances tonight."

Florida midfielder Lindsay Thompson scored the golden goal from 6 yards out, blasting the shot in the upper-right corner after the Lady Vols failed to clear the ball out of the box following a corner kick.

Tennessee entered last year's tournament as the sixth seed, but won the title in improbable fashion, earning an automatic bid into the NCAA Tournament.

The Gators outshot Tennessee 12-9, but junior goalkeeper Molly Baird's nine saves and the Lady Vols defense shut down the Florida strikers. Baird saved multiple close-range shots, and both senior Sarah Jackyra and freshman Ali Hall had goal line deflections.

This was a very disappointing loss. Angela Kelly, Lady Vols head coach

Florida held much of the possession in the first half, but failed to mount more than one threatening attack on goal. The Lady Vols played in a 3-5-2 formation, making things difficult in the middle for the Gators.

As the first half winded down, Tennessee applied more pressure, and kept the ball in Florida's half.

Sophomore Emily Dowd, who has two goals and three assists this season, almost had a breakaway opportunity, but the keeper cleared the ball just before Dowd got to it.

After an unsuccessful free kick by senior Mick Imgram, who left the game with under two minutes left in regulation with an ankle injury, Florida mounted a swift counterattack, but Baird saved the ensuing shot to preserve the tie in the 34th minute.

Tennessee continued to attack going into the second half, using Dowd's speed up top to cause all sorts of problems for the Florida backline. Along with sophomore Chelsea Hatcher, Dowd put constant pressure on Florida goalkeeper Katie Fraine.

Despite their efforts, the Lady Vols didn't execute on numerous goal-scoring opportunities.

After a Florida goal kick was headed back down the center by Hall, Dowd split two defenders to retrieve the ball, and with only the keeper to beat, shot a slow-roller just wide of the left post.

Later, Dowd chased a clearance down the left flank, and crossed the ball in front of goal, but Jayden Barrett missed the wide-open shot.

With the loss, the Vols fall to 10-8-3. They have only won four of their last 12 matches, and will have to wait until Monday to see if they are selected into the field for the NCAA Tournament.