In her previous three seasons, pitcher Rachael Knapp has become one of the most successful pitchers to compete for the Central Michigan softball program.

Entering the 2017 season, the St. Joseph senior held three spots on the CMU record board for strikeouts.

In her 24 appearances this season, Knapp has amassed 165 strikeouts. Her total is a team high and good for seventh in the Chippewa softball record books.

Halfway through conference play, the Chippewa ace is averaging close to seven strikeouts per game. If she continues this pace, she'll have the third-most strikeouts in a season by any CMU pitcher.

"I'm not someone to look at stats," Knapp said. "That just kind of reflects the confidence my team gives me as well, not just my performance."

A Pitching Workhorse

While incredibly humble, there's no debate that the senior’s impact on the team has ignited their recent success.

CMU is 21-10 overall and has started Mid-American Conference play 6-2, largely made possible by the lock-down pitching Knapp delivers on a consistent basis.

Knapp has pitched 62 percent of all 208 innings CMU has played this season. In 129 innings of softball, Knapp has more than double the innings recorded than junior Hanna Warren, who is the next busiest pitcher in the lineup for the Chippewas with more than 51 innings pitched.

Knapp is two innings away from becoming the all-time leader in innings pitched in program history. The record is held by Amber Puchalski, the winningest Chippewa pitcher and a member of the CMU athletics hall of fame.

For head coach Margo Jonker, the reason for throwing Knapp in 77 percent of the 31 games this season is simple — she has full confidence in her senior ace.

"There's a sense of comfort knowing how great of a pitcher she is," Jonker said.

Jonker showed that trust in Knapp when she sent the senior out to the circle to close out Western Michigan on Tuesday. The Chippewas led 1-0 with two outs when Jonker subbed in Knapp for Warren. Knapp got the final out and secured the victory for CMU.

Chasing Puchalski

Knapp's final strikeout tally will be 244 if she continues to average just under seven strikeouts per game, tying her for third with Puchalski, who graduated in 2004 and holds the top three spots in the category.

"Puchalski and Knapp are the rise ball pitchers," Jonker said. "You get the rise ball pitchers and that's where you get the strikeouts. Knapp is in that great pitcher category."

In Puchalski's record 2002 season, she recorded 308 strikeouts — the third most in the country that year.

Knapp may not eclipse the 300 mark this season. However, with 15 regular season games left, Knapp's 165 strikeouts are good for the No. 13 spot in the country.

After an entire career of playing for the winningest coach in CMU history, Knapp expressed how special it has been to play for a coach who has the utmost confidence in her abilities.

"It's pretty incredible," Knapp said. "After four years and as a leader, it's really nice to have that kind of confidence in you."

Knapp and the Chippewas will begin a three-game series against Akron at 3 p.m. Thursday in Ohio.