DALLAS, Texas — Jax State baseball earned three preseason all-conference honors in Conference USA's Preseason All-CUSA Baseball team, the league announced on Thursday at noon.
The three Gamecocks named to the team were catcher
Grayson Ashe, pitcher
Steven Cash, and pitcher
Jackson Sleeper.
Grayson Ashe returns to Jax State for his redshirt junior season. The Montgomery native led the Gamecocks in several statistical categories, including batting average (.318), home runs (12), RBI (45), slugging (.574), and on-base percentage (.435). Additionally, Ashe was the only mainstay in the Gamecock lineup to post an OPS of over 1.000 (1.009). Behind the dish, Ashe made 425 catches and 376 total putouts, assisting with 41 and posting a .981 fielding percentage. Ashe led CUSA with 21 runners caught stealing on the basepath. In conference play, Ashe was one o the top players in CUSA, earning All-Conference honors to end the year thanks to a .360 BA (top-five), a .698 slugging pct (top-five), and an 1.160 OPS (top-five). Ashe's eight homers in CUSA play were also good for fifth in the league in 2025.
Steven Cash was a staple of the weekend rotation in 2025, starting all 16 games he appeared in. He finished 2025 with a record of 5-2, 4.59 ERA (top-10 in CUSA) and a WHIP of 1.23. Cash had the second-lowest opposing batting average in the conference with a .225 figure, only behind former teammate Jackson Phipps who was drafted. He sat down 63 opposing batters in 86.1 innings, the most innings pitched in the conference, and only gave up 44 earned runs and 33 walks. Cash also limited giving up free bases with only five HBP all season, and tied for the least amount of sac flies in the league with only one.
Jackson Sleeper tallied 37.2 innings in 20 appearances from the rubber, picking up three wins and a team high seven saves, which was good for second overall in CUSA. The six foot seven junior racked up 55 strikeouts, only allowing 27 hits, and 15 earned runs to boast a 3.58 ERA to end his season. Against Western Kentucky in the regular season, he compiled 3.1 innings of work, striking out seven, allowing no hits or runs to earn the save. Against Sam Houston, Sleeper came in as the closer and navigated 2.1 innings of work, sitting down five, and not allowing a hit or run to pick up the save for Jax State.
Jax State had the second-most preseason picks in the league, with Dallas Baptist, the projected favorite, earning four picks.
Additionally, Jax State was tabbed to finish fourth with 102 total points and a first place vote. Ahead of the Gamecocks were DBU for first (141 points, 9 first place votes), LA Tech (111, 1), and Kennesaw State (108, 0).
Jax State opens the season at home against the Big XII's Cincinnati Bearcats on Friday, February 13. Season tickets are currently on sale and single game tickets will go on sale soon.
2026 CUSA Baseball Preseason Poll (first-place votes)
| 1. Dallas Baptist (9) |
141 points |
| 2. LA Tech (1) |
111 points |
| 3. Kennesaw State |
108 points |
| 4. Jax State (1) |
102 points |
| 5. Western Kentucky |
97 points |
| 6. Missouri State |
90 points |
| 7. Liberty |
85 points |
| 8. Florida International |
56 points |
| 9. New Mexico State (1) |
45 points |
| 10. Middle Tennessee |
38 points |
| 11. Delaware |
37 points |
| 12. Sam Houston |
26 points |
2026 Preseason Player of the Year
Chayton Krauss, DBU – Sr. – INF
2026 Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Ben Blair, Liberty – Jr. – RHP
2026 Preseason All-Conference Team
C: Grayson Ashe, Jax State
INF: Keaton Grady, DBU
INF: Chayton Krauss, DBU
INF: Tanner Marsh, Liberty
INF: Kyle Hayes, WKU
OF: Cole Cleveland, FIU
OF: Andrew Ildefonso, FIU
OF: Caden Bogenpohl, Missouri State
DH: Jake Bennett, DBU
DH: Steve Solorzano, NM State
UTL: Max Knight, Missouri State
SP: Ryan Borberg, DBU
SP: Steven Cash, Jax State
SP: Ben Blair, Liberty
SP: Drew Horn, MTSU
RP: Jackson Sleeper, Jax State
RP: Blake Hooks, LA Tech
