Utah HS Team Preview: American Fork
February 20, 2022
American Fork - 6A Utah State Champions
We lead off our coverage of the 2021 spring high school baseball season with the defending 6A Utah State Champions, the American Fork Caveman. American Fork is a Utah powerhouse program that features 5 Division 1 commits, a couple of JUCO commits and 2-3 young freshman and sophomores that all will play at the next level.
The Caveman are led by 3 time state championship coach and the 2021 NHSBCA West Region Coach of the Year in Jarod Ingersoll. The 2021 Caveman started the season 21-0 and lost their next game to cross town rival Pleasant Grove, after winning the first 2 games of a 3 game series. American Fork then went another 9 game run, en-route to the 6A state championship, where they shutout the same Viking squad who finished 26-6 in their own right. American Fork from a state ranking standpoint, jumped into the top spot, replacing Snow Canyon after the 13th or 14th game of the season and didn't look back.
The Caveman hit an astounding .392 as a team, and feature one of the best infields in the country. With Easton Jones (BYU), manning the hot corner, Jones is the son of former Utah Valley and Arizona State great, as well as former Dodgers major leaguer, Mitch Jones. At 2B, you have PBR Future Games alum and TCU commit and the #1 ranked player in the 2023 class in Ryder Robinson. Then you get to the senior veterans who should be X factors, with 1B/OF/LHP, Kaden Carpenter, a Utah commit and a recent participant at the PBR Super 60 pro showcase. Then you get to the household name at SS, with Fisher Ingersoll, a TCU commit, and the reigning Gatorade Player of the Year and Utah's "Mr. Baseball." Ingersoll is also a 2-Time 1st Team All-State WR on the football field, and held 3-4 D1 football scholarships, before deciding that baseball was his ultimate route in Big 12 powerhouse and perennial Omaha visitor, the TCU Horned Frogs. Ingersoll also accompanied Carpenter to Chicago on Feb 6th at the PBR Super 60.
The middle of March see's the Caveman being tested early on, as they start the season in the Phoenix area at the prestigious "Boras Classic," featuring some of the top HS teams on the west coast. The event is a scouts dream with so many D1 commits in the valley of the sun, all at one time.
The Caveman then come to St. George in week 3 of the season, to play in the annual "Red Rock Classic" at Dixie State's Bruce Hurst Field, with a collection of the some of the top 6A teams in the state.
American Fork has a good chance to run it back to the 6A title game, if everyone stays healthy and players plays up to their normal standard of play. But everyone will be looking to knock the Caveman off the mountain per se; however if everyone takes that normal next year of progression step, they should be just fine.
American Fork by the numbers
Head Coach: Jarod Ingersoll (6A Coach of the Year / NHSBCA West Region Coach of the Year)
Classification: 6A
Region: 4
2021 Win-Loss: 30-1
State Playoff appearances in last 10 years: 10
State Championship appearances last 10 years: 4
State Championships last 10 years: 3
2021 Final MaxPreps Ranking: 6th in the country
2022 Preseason MaxPreps Ranking: 22
2021 Final PBR Utah Ranking: 1st
2022 Preseason PBR Ranking: Stay Tuned!!
2021 6A State Champions
Key Returners with Class/Position
2022 Kaden Carpenter, OF/1B/LHP (Utah) PBR Super 60
2022 Dax Newman, OF/RHP (CSI)
2022 Maddax Madsen, RHP/INF (Boise State - Football)
2022 Easton Jones, 3B (BYU)
2022 Fisher Ingersoll, SS (TCU) Gatorade Player of the Year! / PBR Super 60
2023 Ryder Robinson, 2B (TCU) PBR Future Games Alum
2023 Josh Rojas, C
2023 Austin Laycock, RHP (Utah Valley U)
Young players who have College potential down the road
2024 Dax Watts, OF
2024 Davis Andrews, 3B/UTL
2023 Trey Roberts, OF
2025 CJ Mascaro, OF
2024 Jett Walker, MIF
Who is your X Factor to your success?
Play together and get better everyday, with role players and pitchers stepping up and being ready to contribute to the success of the team.
Player lost to graduation and College Baseball
2021 Dalton Smith, RHP (Salt Lake CC)
Returning All-State players
(1st Team) 2022 Kaden Carpenter, 1B/OF/LHP
(1st Team) 2022 Fisher Ingersoll, SS (Gatorade Player of the Year / Utah's Mr. "Baseball")
(1st Team) 2023 Ryder Robinson, 2B
(2nd Team) 2022 Dax Newman, OF/RHP
(2nd Team) 2022 Easton Jones, 3B
Coaches Summary and Outlook
As we get through our 2 preseason tournaments, and head into region play, we will be battle tested. There are some really good teams in the state and we are looking forward to competing against the best.