“We are so thrilled for Kaden,” said UVU head coach Nate Rasmussen. “A guy that left a Power 4 as an everyday starter for the belief that we could better his development. Not a lot of players make the decision he made in the portal, and now he’s reaping the reward of it.”

The American Fork, Utah, native earned national recognition before stepping on a college campus, receiving Perfect Game Preseason All-American honors in both 2021 and 2022 at American Fork High School. The standout left-hander helped the Cavemen capture a pair of state championships before beginning his collegiate career at the University of Utah.

After deciding to return home to Utah County and play for the Wolverines, Carpenter made an immediate impact on the Utah Valley offense. He earned first-team All-WAC honors after hitting .338 with 17 home runs, 21 doubles and 58 RBIs. His standout performance against UC Riverside earned him WAC Hitter of the Week honors after he went 8-for-17 with two home runs and 11 RBIs. He recorded at least three RBIs in each game of the series, including a season-high four in the Sunday finale.

Carpenter led the WAC in doubles and finished among the top four in several other categories, including second in walks, third in RBIs and fourth in home runs.

Carpenter became the 22nd player in school history to be selected in the MLB Draft. Utah Valley’s first draft selection came in 1975 when Kelly Jensen was chosen by the Cincinnati Reds in the 17th round. Casey Anderson was the program’s most recent draft pick, selected by the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2023.The Wolverines now have nine former players in professional baseball. Carpenter becomes the fourth player in affiliated baseball, joining Paxton Schultz and  Anderson, who are both competing at the Triple-A level for their respective organizations with Mitch Mueller in High-A. Five additional former Wolverines are currently playing independent professional baseball across the United States in various leagues. 

Men’s golf signs Ofahengaue, Ewell

OREM  — Utah Valley men’s golf head coach Chris Curran has announced the signings of KJ Ofahengaue and Tyler Ewell. Both athletes will join the Wolverines for the 2026-27 season.

A native of Lehi, Utah, Ofahengaue brings NCAA Division I experience to Utah Valley after spending the past three seasons at Utah Tech. He recorded two collegiate top-10 finishes during his career, including a tie for seventh at the 2024 WAC Championship and a tie for 10th at the Colorado State Ram Masters.

“KJ has a ton of game,” Curran said. “He’s had a great summer and I expect that level of play to continue in the coming years.”

Ofahengaue competed in eight of Utah Tech’s 10 team events during the 2024-25 season, posting a 75.04 scoring average. He opened the season by tying for 10th at the Colorado State Ram Masters, highlighted by a collegiate career-low 5-under-par 65 in the second round before closing with a 1-under 69 to finish the tournament at 3-under 207.

He capped the 2024-25 campaign with a third-place finish at the PGA WORKS Collegiate Championship, earning an exemption into the Korn Ferry Tour’s Wichita Open. Ofahengaue redshirted the 2025-26 season.

Prior to Utah Tech, Ofahengaue earned four varsity letters at Lehi High School and was a three-time First Team All-State selection. He finished runner-up at the 2021 Utah 5A State Championship.

One of Utah’s top amateur golfers, Ofahengaue captured three PGA Junior Major championships, earned PGA Junior Player of the Year honors and won the 2022 AJGA Mack Champ Invitational. He also finished second at the 2023 Mack Champ Invitational, placed third at the Johnny Miller Championship, advanced to the semifinals of the Utah Junior State Amateur and has recorded multiple competitive rounds of 63 along with four career holes-in-one.

Ofahengaue comes from an accomplished athletic family. His cousin, Tony Finau, is a PGA Tour professional, while his aunt, Juli Erekson, serves as Utah Valley’s head women’s golf coach. His father, Kelepi, played collegiate football, and his mother, Sara, played collegiate golf at BYU.

Ofahengaue plans to major in finance at Utah Valley.

Ewell comes to Utah Valley after two standout seasons at Central Wyoming, where he established himself as one of the top junior college golfers in the nation. A two-time NJCAA First Team Academic All-American, Ewell earned NJCAA Division I Second Team All-America, NJCAA Division I PING All-District Team and NJCAA Region 9 First Team All-Conference honors following an outstanding sophomore campaign.

“Tyler comes to us after a successful junior college career,” Curran said. “He’ll bring valuable experience to a fairly youthful group and has proven he can compete at a high level. We’re excited to have him in our program.”

During the 2025-26 season, Ewell ranked No. 39 nationally and No. 4 in his region while posting a 72.6 adjusted scoring average. He recorded three tournament victories, five top-three finishes and compiled a 345-27-4 head-to-head record over 22 rounds.

His sophomore season was highlighted by an individual title at the Sterling Invitational, where he fired a 4-under-par 68. He also tied for 10th at the NJCAA Division I National Championship to earn Second Team All-America honors after helping lead Central Wyoming to the Region 9 Championship.