Neshoba Central’s Aspen Wesley gets a congratulatory hand-slap from head coach Trae Embry after walking during her at-bat against Olive Branch earlier this season.

PHILADELPHIA — Aspen Wesley and Madalyn Thompson paused for a minute before looking at each other and unleashing a series of giggles that morphed into hearty laughs.

The two recalled a few of the funny memories they shared when they were young softball players on Neshoba Elite’s and Sudden Impact’s youth teams when one, in particular, stood out.

“Do you remember that one when we were at Gulfport and I threw the ball backward?” Wesley asked Thompson with a laugh.

Thompson shared her version of the memory. 

“I just remember I was trying to catch the ball, and it just went behind her,” Thompson said.

Thompson, a senior, and Wesley, a junior, have come a long way. 

Early Wednesday afternoon, the two joined their Neshoba Central teammates for their final practice before heading to Starkville Thursday, where they’ll attempt to win the Lady Rockets’ sixth-consecutive state title.

Neshoba Central enters Thursday’s MHSAA Class 5A state championship series against Pearl River Central with a sparkling 32-0 record. The Lady Rockets have outscored their opponents 265-28 this season, and the pitcher-catcher combination of Wesley and Thompson has a lot to do with those staggering numbers. 

Their success has been years in the making.

Thompson has been Wesley’s catcher since the two were approximately nine years old, and they’ve since put in countless hours to refine their chemistry.

“It’s been good because she’s been my catcher for so long,” Wesley said. “I just feel more comfortable with her catching me, so I already know how she’s going to set up, and she knows how I’m going to pitch and how I’m going to be.”

Neshoba Central coach Trae Embry is in his sixth year. Having a pitcher and catcher with such history, he said, gives the Lady Rockets many advantages.

“No doubt that with them being together since they were nine years old, it makes Madalyn’s job a lot easier and Aspen’s job a lot easier because they just kind of know what each other is thinking,” Embry said. “They’ve come up with their own set of signs, and when I don’t call the game, they call the game themselves. It really pays off.”

One need not look any further than Wesley’s pitching stats this season as evidence of the fruitful relationship between the two. Wesley has thrown 10 no-hitters to go along with a 0.16 earned-run average. She’s tallied 285 strikeouts in 129 innings of work, and she’s surrendered just 27 hits to opposing hitters. Opponents this year have managed a meager .064 average when she’s in the circle. 

Thompson takes delight in knowing Embry is confident enough in her abilities to allow her to take on some added responsibilities from behind the plate.

“It makes me feel good about myself that he trusts me,” Thompson said.

Neshoba Central’s tight-knit chemistry doesn’t end with Wesley and Thompson — it engulfs the entire team. Sindle Williams, Rivers Gray, Tori Henderson, Alex Bowen, Kylee Thompson and Makenzie Barnett have all played together at some point during their younger years before donning Neshoba Central’s red-and-blue uniforms.

“We talk all the time about anything and everything,” Thompson said. 

When Thompson sets up behind the plate at Mississippi State’s Nusz Park Thursday, it will be her last series as a member of the Lady Rockets. It will also signal the end of  her catching a teammate and friend who she has known since she was 6. 

Embry commented on the impact Thompson’s had on the program the last four years.

“Definitely the chemistry that I have with Aspen and with Madalyn both, and that they have with each other, is definitely a positive for us and really, really something,” Embry said. “And with Madalyn graduating, (it’s something) that we’re going to have to develop with someone else behind the plate. It’s definitely something that is positive, and that makes my life a lot easier.”