The Colonials fell to Youngstown State this afternoon, three sets to one, for their first home loss of the season.

Robert Morris (6-5) lacked energy as the team played its eighth match in 12 days. Head coach Dale Starr called the meeting “the least energetic match of the season.”

Despite the packed preseason schedule, Taylor Lord posted her second consecutive double-double with 10 kills and 15 digs. Lord recorded her first career double-double last season against Youngstown State, a match that resulted in an identical score.

The match started strong on both sides of the net. There was no clear leader for the first few points, but it didn’t take long for fatigue to take over Robert Morris’ match.

Robert Morris fought off multiple set points, though the Penguins managed to squeeze out the first set, winning 31-29.

A strong Penguins defense didn’t help. With five players posting double-digit digs, the Colonials struggled to find the holes. However, Robert Morris managed to stay in the match, taking the second set, 26-24.

RMU came out strong in the third set, yet Youngstown State posted a more productive offense with 12 kills and 38 attack attempts. Despite Robert Morris overcoming a significant deficit, the Penguins came out on top, 25-22, the widest spread of the match.

Going into the fourth set, YSU seemed to underestimate the crunch time offense of the Colonials, taking a time out after they let up a five-point run. RMU stayed strong throughout the fourth, eventually falling 25-23.

After a Pitt invitational this weekend, the Colonials open up conference play at home against Central Connecticut State University on Sept. 24.