Knapp Named MAC's Best; Chippewas Earn High Honors
5/9/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
Andy Sneddon, CMUChippewas.com
MOUNT PLEASANT, Mich. - Five members of the Mid-American Conference champion Central Michigan softball team along with coach Margo Jonker were among those honored by the league on Tuesday.
CMU's Rachael Knapp received the league's Pitcher of the Year Award and was named to the All-MAC First Team along with teammates Allison Curtis and Maison Kalina.
The Chippewas' Rachel Vieira and Hanna Warren were named to the All-MAC Second Team, and Jonker was named the league Coach of the Year.
It is the 10th time that Jonker, who is in her 38th year in charge of the CMU program, has been named the MAC Coach of the Year and the first since 2002.
The Chippewas wrapped up the regular-season MAC title - their first since 2004 -- on Sunday, finishing 18-5 in league play. CMU is 36-13 overall and is scheduled to face Western Michigan (23-27) in a MAC Tournament opener at Firestone Stadium in Akron on Wednesday at 1 p.m. The Chippewas are seeded No. 1.
Western finished 11-13 in MAC play and is the eighth seed. The Chippewas swept the three-game regular-season series from Western, outscoring the Broncos by a combined 20-2. The winner advances to play either Kent State or Ball State on Thursday at 1 p.m.
Knapp was nothing short of fantastic throughout the regular season, going 21-8 with a 1.39 earned run average. She leads the league in victories and ranks second in ERA.
The senior right-hander from St. Joseph was named the MAC West Pitcher of the Week seven times this season as she tossed a league-best 10 shutouts. She allowed 41 earned runs on 143 hits, walked 53, and struck out 235. She also recorded two saves.
She is just the second Chippewa to earn the MAC Pitcher of the Year Award. CMU great Amber Puchalski was so honored in 2001 and again in 2004.
Curtis, a sophomore outfielder from Tucson, Ariz., ranks second in the MAC with a .394 batting average. Among her 63 hits are 10 doubles, a league-best five triples, and one home run. She also has 20 RBI, scored 39 runs, and was caught stealing just twice in 12 attempts.
Last spring, Curtis was an All-MAC First Team selection and was named to the league's all-freshman squad.
Kalina, a junior catcher/designated player from Midland, is hitting .345 - second among CMU's everyday players - and is tied for second on the team with 50 hits. She ranks third among Chippewas with 23 RBI.
She earned All-MAC Second Team honors last season.
Vieira, the Chippewas' second baseman, is hitting .268 and shares the team lead in both home runs (5) and RBI (26). Vieira is a sophomore from Clarkston.
Warren, a junior from Canton, combined with Knapp to give the Chippewas a potent one-two pitching punch. She is 11-5 with a 2.61 ERA. In 88 2/3 innings, she has allowed 81 hits, 33 earned runs, walked 31 and struck out 61.
With Knapp and Warren handling the vast majority of the pitching duties, the Chippewas have put together a 1.87 team ERA, best in the MAC and 22nd in the nation.
