ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame
Tickets to the 6 p.m. dinner on April 1 in ABAC’s Gressette Gym are $40 per person. Tickets can be purchased from the ABAC Athletics Office at (229) 391-4930 or by clicking on this link: Hall of Fame Banquet. Friends and family members should mention the honoree's name when purchasing tickets so proper seating can be arranged.
The deadline to purchase tickets is March 25. There will be no tickets sold at the event.
Every year ABAC honors some of its most accomplished athletes and supporters by inviting them to join the ABAC Hall of Fame. With a rich tradition of athletic success, ABAC is proud of all of its athletes and the talent and sportsmanship they showed during their time at ABAC. This class was originally scheduled to be inducted in 2020 before the Covid pandemic closed all public events at ABAC.
Individuals are nominated in one of three categories: Athlete, Coach, or Contributor and nominations may come from any source.
The ABAC Hall of Fame seeks to honor those alumni and friends who made a great contribution to the school with their support and athletic talent and sportsmanship.
ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame 2022 Inductees
Eight individuals and one team will be honored with their induction into the Class of 2022 of the Athletics Hall of Fame on April 1 at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College.
ABAC Athletics Director Alan Kramer said the 2022 class includes the 2002 women’s state championship basketball team, tennis player German Dalmagro, three-sport letterman Clayt Hurst, softball player Lee Davis Watson, soccer standout Nikita Morris, tennis player, coach, and contributor Margaret Treadway, contributor and volunteer assistant softball coach James Winfred “Vic” Vickers, contributor, and volunteer assistant softball coach Jimmy Spurlin, and Director of Public Relations Emeritus Michael D. Chason.
“This is our largest group of inductees, and they cover a lot of ground,” Kramer said “From all the way back to the ABAC football team to the soccer field and even the broadcast booth, we’ve got it covered this year. It’s going to be a fun night.”
The Golden Fillies of Coach Julie Conner peaked at the right time when they won only the second women’s basketball state title in the history of ABAC on March 2, 2002. In the state tournament, ABAC defeated Georgia Perimeter 61-59 and Middle Georgia 48-44 before knocking off host team Atlanta Metro 76-72 in overtime in the championship game. Team members included Melissa Gail, Chelsie Miller, Amanda Marshall, Mary Lee Henderson Clark, Shanekia Felton, Bronwyn Smyre Glover, Jasmin Lee Felton, Nikki Inge Greenwood, Latoya Office, Jeanine Dorminey Webster, and Freda Cherry Long.
Dalmagro was named to the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-America team in both singles and doubles when he played for Coach Alan Kramer’s Golden Stallions’ tennis team in 2002 and 2003. He was the national champion in #2 singles in 2002 and national runner-up in #2 singles in 2003. Dalmagro was also named the Intercollegiate Tennis Association National Player of the Year in 2003. The Stallions won the state championship in both 2002 and 2003 and finished second in the NJCAA national tournament both years.
Hurst was an Omega High School graduate who was a three-sport letterman at ABAC when he played basketball, football, and baseball for the Golden Stallions between 1934 and 1936. He played center on the 1936 ABAC basketball team which was the runner-up in the first Georgia Junior College state tournament in Milledgeville. Named ABAC’s Best Athlete in the 1936 yearbook, Hurst played on the ABAC football team in 1934 and 1935 and the ABAC baseball team in 1935. He passed away in 1986.
Watson was a two-time NJCAA All-America selection for the Golden Fillies’ softball team of Coach Ellen Vickers in 1993 and 1994. The Tift County High School alumnus hit .535 in her leadoff spot and scored 78 runs for the 1993 team which finished 49-12. The Golden Fillies wound up second in the state tournament despite a .448 state tournament batting average by Watson which earned her a spot on the 1993 All-Tournament Team. In 1994, Watson batted a team-high .519 in the regular season when the Fillies amassed an incredible 52-2 record including a 24-0 conference mark.
Morris gained NJCAA All-America honors during her freshman season with Coach Jimmy Ballenger’s ABAC soccer team in 2012 when she scored 34 goals, had seven assists, and racked up 75 points for a team which made it to the semifinals of the state tournament. She scored all four goals in an ABAC win over Wesleyan and followed that up by scoring five of the seven ABAC goals against Oxford Emory. Sidelined with an injury for most of her sophomore season in 2013, Morris still contributed four goals in nine starts.
Treadway was an NJCAA All-America selection when she played #5 singles and #3 doubles for Kramer’s Golden Fillies’ tennis team in 1995. ABAC won the state championship and finished sixth in the 1995 national tournament. Treadway generously volunteered her time as a volunteer assistant tennis coach from 1996-2000 and served as head coach of the Fillies in 2000-01. ABAC won the state title under Treadway’s leadership, and the team finished fifth in the NJCAA national tournament. She has assisted the ABAC tennis teams on a regular basis every year since that time.
Vickers was the husband of ABAC Coach Ellen Vickers and gave freely of his time to assist the softball program as a volunteer assistant coach from 1988 through 1994. The Golden Fillies won the state championship in six of those seven years and captured a national title in 1991. In 1994, the team rolled to a school-record 58-4 record. Mr. Vickers was a longtime employee of the Department of Transportation. He passed away in 2016.
Spurlin was a Tifton High School graduate who played baseball for ABAC when he attended the college from 1952-54. He gave freely of his time as a volunteer assistant coach for the ABAC women’s softball team from 1988-94. Always involved with youth sports, Spurlin was named to the American Softball Association Hall of Fame in 1992. He was a former chair of the Tift County Commission and served from 1976-92 as vice-chair of the Tifton City Commission. Spurlin passed away in 2006.
Chason was named the Director of Public Relations at ABAC in 1979. As a former sports editor of the Valdosta Daily Times, he loved sports and involved himself in the ABAC basketball program by broadcasting the Golden Stallions and Golden Fillies’ games on the radio from 1979 to 2008. In 2008 as a part of ABAC’s 100th birthday celebration, Chason originated the idea for the ABAC Athletics Hall of Fame. He retired in 2011 but returned to the college on a part-time basis as a consultant in his role as Director of Public Relations Emeritus.
The Athletics Hall of Fame dinner is a part of the 2022 ABAC Homecoming celebration. For more information on Homecoming, interested persons can visit the ABAC web site at www.abac.edu/homecoming.
All former athletes, coaches, administrators or supporters who made significant contributions to the college’s athletic programs, either through their participation in athletics as a student or their subsequent association with athletics are eligible for nomination.
Nominations for 2023 must be submitted by December 15, 2022. To submit an application ABAC Nomination Form.
| Past Hall of Fame Recipients | |||
| 2019 | 2018 | 2017 | 2016 |
| 2015 | 2014 | 2012 | |
| 2009 | 2008 | ||