FARGO, N.D.--Sara Hopwood hit a lead-off home run in the eighth inning to lift IPFW a 2-1 win over North Dakota State in extra innings in a Summit League softball game played Saturday, April 3, at the Ellig Sports Complex. The Mastodons swept the three-game series.

North Dakota State (19-17, 4-5 Summit), which has lost four in a row, is scheduled to play Creighton University (14-16, 2-5 Missouri Valley) in a non-league doubleheader at 1 p.m. Monday, April 5, in Omaha.

Hopwood lined a 2-0 pitch over the left center fence to start the eighth inning for IPFW (19-10, 11-1 Summit), which won its sixth straight game and posted its 10th straight league win. The Bison fell to 0-4 in extra innings this season.

Courtney Corbin (11-6) quieted a NDSU threat in the eighth. Elisa Victa singled up the middle with one out and advance to second on a wild pitch. She retured the next two batters in order to pick up her second complete game of the series. Corbin struck out 11, allowed four hits and walked one.

Freshman Whitney Johnson (14-11) was impressive in the circle and bounced back from Friday's short outing. Johnson struck out eight, scattered seven hits and walked two.

IPFW took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first with Kristina Karpun's solo home run to center field. Karpun and Hopwood each had two hits for the Mastodons.

The Bison answered in the bottom of the first with Melissa Chmielewski 's line shot over the center field fence. It was Chmielewski's team-leading seventh home run of the season. She has 51 RBI and is one away from matching her career best.