RICHMOND, Va. – Elon senior infielder
Jackson Alford was selected as an All-CAA honorable mention, as announced by the conference Wednesday afternoon.
Alford is Elon's top returning hitter after his breakout debut season with the Phoenix in 2025 when he was one of two players on the team to start all 57 games. Among Phoenix batters last season, Alford finished tied for first in runs scored (62), second in doubles (14), second in extra-base hits (23), second in total bases (105), third in hits (66), third in stolen bases (11), third in slugging percentage (.451), third in OPS (.825) and fourth in batting average (.283). His 62 runs scored were the most runs scored in a season by an Elon player since 2009.
In the CAA's first year of the new divisions format, Elon was predicted to be tied for fourth in the conference's south division in 2026. Voted on by the coaches of the south division schools, Elon received 10 votes which was tied with William & Mary for fourth. 2025 CAA Tournament runner-up UNCW was tabbed first in the south division with College of Charleston and Campbell just behind the Seahawks.
2026 CAA BASEBALL PREDICTED ORDER OF FINISH
North Division
Northeastern (4 first-place votes) 16
Hofstra 9
Stony Brook 9
Towson (1 first-place vote) 9
Monmouth 7
South Division
UNCW (3 first-place votes) 23
Charleston (2 first-place votes) 22
Campbell (1 first-place vote) 18
Elon 10
William & Mary 10
North Carolina A&T 7
2026 CAA BASEBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Brian Heckelman, Towson C Sr. Mineola, N.Y.
Jamie Laskofski, William & Mary IF So. Burke, Va.
Joey Morton, Campbell IF Sr. Oxford, Pa.
Carmelo Musacchia, Northeastern IF Sr. New York, N.Y.
Landon Penfield, Charleston IF So. Blythewood, S.C.
JT Taylor, North Carolina A&T IF So. Salisbury, N.C.
Max D'Alessandro, Towson OF Sr. Mount Laurel, N.J.
Harrison Feinberg, Northeastern OF Sr. Greenwich, Conn.
Joe Simpson, Campbell OF Sr. Clinton, Iowa
Bruce Wyche, North Carolina A&T OF So. McDonough, Ga.
Jett Music, Campbell UT So. Clayton, N.C.
Cole Nelson, UNCW DH Jr. Charlotte, N.C.
Connor Marshburn, UNCW SP Jr. Cary, N.C.
Carlos Martinez, Hofstra SP Sr. College Point, N.Y.
Ryan Mealy, Monmouth SP So. Wappingers, N.Y.
Diego Barrett, North Carolina A&T RP Gr. Woodbridge, Va.
Alex Lyon, Charleston RP Sr. Columbia, S.C.
PRESEASON PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Harrison Feinberg, Northeastern
Honorable Mention: Dylan Johnson, C, Charleston;
Jackson Alford, IF, Elon; Brent Gibbs, IF, Charleston; Kevin Jones, IF, UNCW; Trevor Lucas, IF, UNCW; Ethan Plyler, IF, Charleston; Chris Walsh, IF, Monmouth; Ryan Gerety, OF, Northeastern; Matthew Jackson, OF, Stony Brook; Tyler Smith, UT, North Carolina A&T; Lleyton Grubich, SP, Campbell; Hayden Thomas, SP, Charleston; Davis Aiken, RP, Charleston
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