Danny Ings returned from injury to score the winner with a penalty as Southampton came back to edge an entertaining Premier League encounter at Brighton.
The result lifts Ralph Hasenhuttl's side up to fifth in the top flight, while the Seagulls remain 16th.
Ings, back after a month out with a knee injury, came on as a half-time substitute and converted from the spot after VAR penalised Solly March for a foul on Kyle Walker-Peters.
Referee David Coote initially awarded the visitors a free-kick on the edge of the Brighton box after March tangled with the Southampton full-back, whose momentum carried him forward.