Correspondent photo / Robert Hayes YSU’s Jewel Watkins drives to the basket during Wednesday’s game vs. Robert Morris at the UPMC Events Center.

The Youngstown State women’s basketball team lost its penultimate game of the regular season Wednesday.

The Penguins fell to Robert Morris 76-53 in a one-sided affair in Moon Township, Pa.

YSU (11-18) hung tough with the Colonials for most of the first quarter; the Penguins even led 9-7 just over four minutes into the game, but they soon surrendered the lead and never captured it again.

RMU scored 8 unanswered points down the stretch of the first quarter, at the end of which the Colonials led 15-12.

The second period proved to be the most lopsided of Tuesday’s Horizon League matchup and where RMU put considerable distance between itself and YSU. Robert Morris outscored YSU 20-7 in the second, thanks in large part due to an abysmal display of shooting by the Penguins, who made just one of 10 field-goal attempts in the second quarter after a first period in which they went 5-for-18 from the field.

The shooting improved in the second half — the Penguins were 12-of-27 on field goals — but it was nowhere good enough to climb out of their 16-point halftime deficit.

The Colonials outscored YSU 21-17 and 20-17 in the third and fourth quarters, respectively.

Jewel Watkins led the way in terms of scoring for the Penguins with 18 points, eight of which came at the free-throw line. Sophia Gregory and Abby Liber also finished in double figures with 13 and 10 points, respectively. Liber also recorded a team-high nine rebounds.

For RMU, Noa Givon recorded game highs of 20 points and 10 rebounds. Katelyn Chomko added 15 points of her own, all of which came from beyond the arc.

The loss drops YSU to 11-18 on the season and 6-13 in Horizon League play ahead of its regular-season finale.

The Penguins, who won two games in a row last week for the first time since early December, host Cleveland State at Zidian Family Arena on Saturday at 2 p.m.

In the first meeting between the two teams, the Vikings defeated YSU 67-53 in Cleveland.

After the Cleveland State game, the Penguins will turn their attention to the Horizon League tournament, which begins Tuesday.

YSU’s first-round opponent has yet to be determined.