Cleveland, OH-In the series opener of a heavyweight fight between the top two teams in the Horizon League standings the Cleveland State softball team prevailed in extra innings in a game that lived up to its billing on Saturday at Viking Field. The game was tied at three through seven innings and the Vikings overcame an RMU home run in the top of the eighth by scoring two runs in the bottom of the frame to emerge with a 5-4 victory.
 
Cleveland State is now 16-3 in the Horizon League and 21-15 overall. RMU falls to 24-15 and 14-7 in league play. The Vikings remain in first place in the league standings and have won 11 of their last 12 games, all against league opponents.
 
RMU seized the early lead thanks to back-to-back home runs in the top of the third inning. Cleveland State starter Melissa Holzopfel was on her way to a third consecutive shutout inning retiring two of the first three hitters in the inning before Anna Resnik launched a two-run home run to center field to put RMU on the board first. Courtney Poulich followed with a solo shot to make it 3-0 Colonials.
 
Cleveland State responded with two runs of its own in the bottom of the third. Holzopfel singled up the middle to score Kylie Gorsuch and advanced to third when the throw from center field was offline and went out of play. Brooke Albaugh followed with an RBI groundout that brought Holzopfel home to make it 3-2 RMU at the end of the third.
 
The two teams were scoreless until the Vikings rallied to tie it in the bottom of the fifth. Sophie Spellman led off with a single on a hard-hit ball to third base and was sacrificed to second. Haley West then came through with a clutch hit as she lined a single into right center field that brought home Spellman with the tying run.
 
Neither team scored in the sixth or seventh inning setting the stage for extra innings. RMU landed the first blow with another home run as Poulich hit her second of the game, another solo shot that put RMU back ahead 4-3. RMU scored all four of its runs on home runs in the game.
 
The Vikings were not rattled by the long ball and punched back in the bottom of the inning. Back-to-back hits from Albaugh and Sydney Shammo put runners at first and second with one out. With Delaney Ellis at the plate, two passed balls allowed both runners to move up two bases, with Albaugh scoring on the second one to tie the score at 4. Ellis then hit a ground ball to third base, Shammo took off immediately and the throw was not in time to the plate as she slid in from third with the winning run.
 
Holzopfel went the distance in the circle tallying 13 strikeouts against just one walk in eight innings of work for her 15^th win of the season. Cleveland State honored its three seniors, Holzopfel, Albaugh and Spellman, in a ceremony prior to the game. 
 
The two teams meet again tomorrow in a doubleheader in the final home games of the season at Viking Field. A special pre-game ceremony honoring the entire Cleveland State team will begin at approximately 12:30 p.m. with first pitch of game one at 1:00 p.m.