Samantha Davis pitches for ABAC in a 2018 game.

TIFTON — Look for a strong season from the Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College Fillies in 2019.

Though ABAC is out of session currently, the squad added to its depth the 2017-18 school year and they will soon get to work on the practice field.

“I think we’ll do a little better offensively,” said head coach Jennifer Martinez, whose team averaged three runs per contest this spring.

“We have a lot more depth,” she said.

The regular season itself is still months off and high school season has yet to get off the ground in Georgia, but Martinez already is thinking towards the year after; she already has “eight or nine” verbal commitments.

“Slowly, kind of looking at 2020,” she said.

The Fillies did not have the greatest 2018, Martinez admitted.

ABAC started 0-4 and suffered another eight-game losing skid during the campaign. After these early setbacks, they played much stronger the rest of the way, but the hole was too deep and the Fillies missed the Georgia Collegiate Athletic Association playoffs.

“I think we underachieved,” Martinez said. ABAC’s final record was 17-31.

Though the record was not a flashy one, some of the performances were.

Sophomore Taylor Corbett hit .310 and had 44 hits, both stats leading the team. Katie Young, a freshman, had the most runs batted in at 20. She hit .278. Another freshman, Aspen Barker was second in average at .279.

In the pitching department, Samantha Davis had an ERA of 1.63, according to stats on the NJCAA’s website. She will return for her sophomore season and Martinez is thrilled about the possibilities.

Labeling her a “workhorse” — Davis had 24 complete games in ABAC’s 48 starts — Martinez thinks she will be a team leader, especially to the newcomers.

“She’s going to complement other pitchers coming in,” said Martinez.

There are three incoming pitchers, which will do wonders for lessening the load on Davis’ shoulders. Martinez said all three had their own styles and habits.

Two of the newcomers are Taylor Layfield (formerly of Worth County) and Ansley Paulk (Cook).

Layfield’s Lady Rams dropped just one regular season game and did not lose until the state semifinals, where they were defeated in the double elimination bracket by Calhoun, then lost to Cook in their second crack at making the championship game. Throughout the year, Layfield sparkled.

Stats input by Worth on MaxPreps showed the hurler with a season mark of 12-2, a figure slightly deceptive considering Layfield’s other numbers. Layfield struck out 163 batters and allowed just 10 earned runs, which gave her an earned run average of 0.79.

Paulk was the star pitcher for Cook, which ultimately finished second in the state to Calhoun.

The newcomers give ABAC “a cushion as to who we can use in the circle,” she said.

More talent, including pitching, are coming to ABAC in a handful of transfers from other colleges. Among these are outfielder Jamilah Johnson (last at Gulf Coast State, Fla.), infielder Sutton Bridges (LaGrange College) and pitcher Josey Wessel (LaGrange College). Bridges played high school ball at Southwest Georgia Academy and Wessel was at Crisp Academy.

Helping to handle this influx of new pitchers will be Braxton Hill, a catcher who played for Valwood in 2017.

“She’s a great catcher,” said Martinez. Hill and the other first-year players coming in have the opportunity to become game changers, she said.

At the very least, they will push the Fillies’ returnees even further.

“It’s going be good competition,” Martinez said.

The team will get together soon for fall practices. Martinez would like a start in late August. When fall hits, ABAC will play a handful of scrimmages against other schools.

Expected opponents include Georgia Southwestern State, Albany State, Mercer University, Georgia College and State University, Thomas University and the College of Coastal Georgia. Thomas University will host a round-robin tournament. All schools are four-year institutions.

“I like to play four-year programs,” said Martinez. “I want them playing higher level teams.” This, she said, is not just good for her program, but also good for players. The scrimmages might help a player find a spot at one of these schools after she finishes her career at ABAC.