By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor
The present and future aligned for the Thompson Warriors to make a pair of miracle runs through regionals and the state tournament, the latter requiring the maximum number of games after a first-round loss, to claim another blue map for the program.
Even without some of those stars like Aubree Hooks, Hannah Hobbs and Olivia Tindell, Thompson still has a plethora of talent to make another run. However, they're working as if they have everything to prove now that they have a target on their back.
"They compete every day," Thompson co-head coach Kevin Todd said. "They don't want anybody to outwork them just as far as their own teammates. So, it's just a standard that they have internally, which as coaches we love, and that's what gives us the expectation of competing for a state championship every year. It's not anything that we're doing as coaches. It's what they bought into over the last few years, and they believe they should be there, so it's on them."
Thompson returns four All-County First Team players, two of which are pitchers in South Alabama signee Kadyn Bush and a UT-Martin commit in junior Autumn Ingle.
Bush finished with a 1.01 WHIP and 90 strikeouts capped off by a marathon run at state. Her value goes beyond the circle though as she batted .443 and serves as an extension of the coaching staff on the field with her vocal leadership.
Ingle finished the 2025 campaign with a 7-2 record, 1.52 ERA, 1.03 WHIP and 72 strikeouts. While she primarily served as a relief arm down the stretch, earning four saves that way, she'll step into a larger starting role now that two-time Shelby County Pitcher of the Year Hooks is throwing for Indiana.
As for the pieces around her, Kelsey Burden returns at shortstop after bursting onto the scene with a .415 average, 25-of-26 mark on stolen bases and a state championship MVP performance as just a freshman. Todd now views her as the leader of the defense despite her age thanks to her strong leadership traits and big performances to back them up.
Burden herself is excited about the chemistry that the team has.
"These are my best friends," Burden said. "We play each other every day, go through a lot together, so (I'm) pretty excited."
Morgan Adolphus enters her senior year following a .404 season at the plate where she struck out just nine times in 114 at-bats. She remains in the outfield but moves to center to cover for Tindell's departure, a position that Todd said suits her well.
"We lost our center fielder to UAB, who's been starting centerfield for four years, and Morgan's kind just stepped in, took over that role, and so yeah, (I) feel really good," Todd said.
Even with three of their top four pitchers back in 2026, the offense could be as great of a strength, if not more. Players like Burden and Adolphus bring strong top-end speed to go with their efficient bats, and they'll be supported by veterans like Whitney Holtzapfel, Aubrey Bauer, Josie Hamm, Lexi Kelley and Blakely Davis.
However, depth is a concern compared to last year, so the hope is that more players can develop as they go through the season.
"Offensively, we have a chance to be really good," Todd said. "We may be a little faster than we've been in the last couple years overall as a team. We're not as deep as we were last year, in my opinion. I thought last year, we could go to 14, 15, girls. So injuries, hopefully we pray that we don't have any serious injuries. And if not, we should be pretty good."
That talent remains as hungry as ever to improve and take the team to another level.
"We worked on a lot of physical and mental aspects of the game," Bush said. "Physically, I feel like a lot of us have gotten stronger, faster. Right now, we're working on being together as a team and like having a good mentality on the field."
Faced with a schedule that includes last year's state finals opponent Tuscaloosa County in area play, matchups with Hoover and Helena and tournaments all around the state, the Warriors will certainly be tested on their road to Oxford, but they welcome all comers.
Bush said the team wants to win and expects to do so, but she also recognizes it's a long season and setbacks will likely come along the way. Their biggest goal is to improve throughout the season so that when they get to state, they're battle-tested and know exactly who they are as a team.
"None of us expect to lose," Bush said. "We do want to win a state championship, and that's always the goal. But at the end of the day, we don't put pressure on ourselves, like, 'Oh, we have to win every single game in order to win a state championship.' We're trying to grow throughout the season so that when we get there, it's easy."
To get there, Thompson's players and coaches have created a culture where they cheer on successes but also lovingly hold each other accountable when they know their teammates aren't playing to their potential.
Having people around them in support through the good times and bad helps lift everyone up and toward their goals. Players like Adolphus appreciate the challenges she faces and the support she gets during it because they reinforce her resilience and build her confidence.
"I really enjoy it because it helps me, when I make an error or something, it helps me move past that and realize that I can overcome that or work on something," Adolphus said.
Setting high standards and going through challenges now in softball is something that benefits them in life, as co-head coach Kaleigh Furuto said. She hopes they can fall back on their softball experience in the future to show them how to overcome challenging circumstances.
"I just think we've set a standard, and that the girls know after softball there's more to life," Furuto said. "So when she's talking about adversity, that aspect of it, knowing that if she does fail, she can push past that, and then there's still another game. So in life, knowing that, softball is over. I still can't give up. I got to push through hard times."
It's a mindset that carried them to a state title last year, and it's one they'll rely on again.
The Warriors have become known for a variety of things to many people across the state's softball landscape, but above anything else, they want to be known for their faith and for winning.
The coaches and players aren't ashamed of their high standards, and now that the current players have been to that mountaintop, they've seen the work that needs to be done to get there.
Their goal is use their culture of hard work and togetherness to improve each day and reach that championship standard once again.
"We put God in our program. We want him to always be out front and number one with us," Todd said. "We don't talk about, it's just kind of known it's just our standard we have. But if we don't win a state championship, then we don't feel like it'd be as successful. We're not saying you have to win it to be successful. You don't. But, I mean, there's a reason they keep score. We want to be the best, and that's kind of what we talked about as being our best every day. And if we do that, things take care of themselves."
