LOUISVILLE, Ky. — As Jordan Major puts it, "I go crazy." She's diving around, throwing her body every which way. She gets in her teammates' faces if she senses a lack of effort. Words of encouragement are delivered just as forcefully. And when she wins, she does a victory lap, arms swinging wildly in celebration.

This isn't an image of game day, mind you. No, this delirious scene often occurs on "Competition Tuesdays." These are so-called "fun days" for the Bellarmine University women's soccer team. Major, to put it mildly, is not one to dial down the intensity.

"Everyone kind of wants to be on her team (in intra-team games), but at the same time you don't," describes junior goalkeeper Hannah Poteet. "If you mess up, she'll be on you because she's all about winning. It's not in a mean way; it's in a fun way."

Well, Major sort of tiptoes that line.

As junior forward Mary Beth Gorham views it, "I think she almost intimidates her teammates to the point where they make sure they play well because you don't want to disappoint her."

Indeed, with Major, playing well — in matches, in practice and, yes, in good-spirited team games — is what matters most. It frequently leads to winning — especially for the NCAA Tournament fixture Knights — and, if you're not fully invested in winning, the senior defender's patience can wear thin in a hurry.

"It takes a little while to get used to me," Major said with a knowing smile. "I try to get across what I think is best for the team, and they usually know that I'm looking in the best interest of the team. I'm not calling them out to make them feel bad about themselves. I know what everyone on the team is capable of, strengths and weaknesses. Once people get that, they start to trust me more."

They do trust her. So much so, in fact, that they voted the North Oldham (Ky.) High School product as a co-captain with Poteet.

"Jordan will say what she wants to say, which is very good as our captain," Gorham said. "I think that attitude brings something good to the team. She will lay it out for you, and that's it. She's a good leader to have as a senior and as our center back. She gets us going."

Major is not lacking in self-awareness. Of her incendiary behavior in competitive activities, she willingly admits that "I don't want to mess up because I'm the one being obnoxious." That bluntness and her fiery competitiveness may be her defining personality traits on the soccer field. The daughter of an Air Force colonel, she learned early to cut the fat out of conversations that call for directness.

"I like to get to the point, and on the field you don't really have time for small talk," she said. "People need to hear you, and I'm not afraid to let them hear me."

They see her, too, being a reliable presence in the back line. Major started every game last season and logged the second-most minutes on the team among non-goalkeepers. With her help, the defense allowed less than one goal per game as the Knights finished 14-4-3, gained the second seed in the Great Lakes Valley Conference Tournament and sealed an NCAA Tournament bid for the fourth time in six years.

"She's very consistent, so I know I can always count on her," Poteet said. "We work together. She trusts me and I trust her. I know she'll have my back and I'll have hers."

"She has natural things about her which makes her teammates trust her to be a captain," BU Coach Chris Tinius said. "She gets things done on the field, but she's good from a social aspect to make sure everyone is on the same page and connected off the field."

Center back has become a tradition-rich position at Bellarmine, with three-time All-American Abby Schuhmann and two-time All-Midwest Region selection Taylor Gamm occupying the spot before Major assumed the duties. Major acknowledged that pressures come with her task, but to temper them she reins in her approach.

"I just try to be in the moment every game," said Major, an Academic All-GLVC selection. "It's important to look at the future and our goals, but it's also important for me just to focus on one game at a time and make sure that what (Tinius) and I talk about for each game is what I'm doing."

She values stability, the example set by parents Renee and Mike. Despite being in a military family, Major hasn't had to call many places home, living in Charleston, South Carolina, for 13 years before moving to the Louisville area in the seventh grade. Not surprisingly, it wasn't exactly a fish-out-of-water tale for Major, who went on to become an All-State performer at North Oldham.

"I'm not shy, so I kind of fit right in," she said of her new school surroundings. "I kind of made my presence known — in a good or a bad way."

Yes, she tiptoes that line … a lot.

But she never does when it comes to her desire to win, which means she gets to "go crazy" … a whole lot.