SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of April 7, 2026)
Justine Frantz is exactly where she is supposed to be. She is a two-year diving captain and three-time top three finisher in the Suburban One League championships, District One Championships, and PIAA State Diving Championships. She was the driving force behind the formation and growth of Upper Moreland’s Unified Club and Unified Track and Field team. She has her college path set and is passionate about the career she plans to embark upon. But that doesn’t mean it’s been an easy journey. Nor does it mean that she always expected to be where she is now. On the contrary, Frantz’s journey has been one of unexpected twists and turns as well as having to overcome both physical and mental obstacles.
A multi-sport athlete throughout her youth who was passionate about gymnastics through much of middle school, Frantz came into high school choosing to focus on diving in the winter, then playing lacrosse in the spring under the eye of her mother Kim Frantz, the Golden Bears’ longtime lacrosse coach. She had grown a little too tall for gymnastics and having dived for her club team, she chose to dedicate herself to becoming the best diver she could be. But as her freshman season started, a nagging back pain began to get worse and worse. “I pushed it off for as long as I could, until it got to the point where I couldn’t get out of the
water anymore without being in excruciating pain,” Frantz said. “Apparently, I had scoliosis that was never diagnosed, and they couldn’t fix it anymore because I was already past the age where they could. So that area became more susceptible to the injuries you can get as a result, and I had gotten stress fractures in my L4 and L5 vertebrae (at the bottom of the spine). I had to wear a hard plastic scoliosis brace for 8 weeks. I’m in the marching band, and I went on a trip with the marching band to Florida in this back brace.”
It also meant that her freshman diving season ended early, and she could only watch as the Golden Bears competed in leagues, districts, and states that year. While recovery from the fractures was difficult physically, it also proved to be mentally challenging for someone who had spent so much time dedicated to athletics and being active. While the injury derailed her freshman winter season, it also upended her plan of playing lacrosse that spring. But as the old saying goes, when one door closes, another opens. Unable to play lacrosse while recuperating and having plenty of free time with no practices or games on her schedule, Frantz was asked to help out for a club that would end up changing the direction of her high school athletic career. With Upper Moreland planning to start a Unified Club as well as Unified Bocce and Unified Track and Field teams, Frantz was asked to man the signup table in the spring. To say that Frantz’s situation turned out to be a blessing in disguise would be an understatement.
“Right away, we were looking for someone to be a leader and who wanted to get to know the kids with intellectual disabilities,” said Unified Track coach Megan Fisher. “Justine stepped up and she just keeps going strong. She comes up with stuff we do each month. In track, she’s getting everyone stretched and warmed up, motivating students, helping them when they need it. She’s running and also doing the running broad jump. She’s so good at working with the kids, giving them instructions and showing them how to do an event. She’s someone who wants to make things better for everyone.”
Frantz found a new passion, and one that would help frame her future. “I love Unified Track,” she said. “You can ask any athlete, they’ll tell you that there are days you just don’t want to go to practice after school. But I’ve never felt that way about Unified. I’m always so excited to go. Seeing these kids who might never get the chance to run a race or take a bus to an away meet, to be in that community where everyone is supporting each other, it’s such an amazing thing to be a part of. You can be competitive as part of a team but not to the point where it gets too intense or it becomes unenjoyable. Unified is such a joy to be a part of.”
Frantz will head to Seton Hall University – a school that never entered her college search until early in her senior year – to continue her diving career. She is also excited to look to the future and a chance to continue working and helping the kinds of kids she’s formed bonds with through her time in Unified. “I’ve looked at a lot of careers with kids with special needs,” she said. “OT spoke to me, and through Unified, I really do love being around these kids. They are the most positive people on this planet. They always bring a smile to my face. Those are the people I want to surround myself with when I move out into the world.”
To read Frantz’s complete profile, please click on the following link: https://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/justine-frantz-00123819
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of April 7, 2026)
When David Dian was a freshman on a powerhouse North Penn swim team, he was just trying to stay in his lane, literally and figuratively. Now that his scholastic career is over, he has made history by putting together one of the most unique and impressive seasons in recent memory. “He may become the first athlete to score points at the state level in both diving and individual swimming events—a rare accomplishment that speaks to his versatility, athleticism, and work ethic,” said coach Andy Walton. Added Dian: “Last year, when I did it for the first time, we went back and we tried to find out if anybody had ever done it. There
were a few swimmers who had been in relays, but no one had ever done it as an individual. It was nice being able to be able to get that achievement.”
As a freshman, Dian made it to districts in the 500 but not states (although he did qualify in diving). In his sophomore year, Dian medaled in diving at districts and had a personal best in the 500. Then, his junior year saw Dian get fifth in districts in the 500, while winning gold in diving. Although he placed 10th in states in diving, it came with a caveat. “Junior year was really hard because I swam the same day as diving,” said Dian. “So, while I was still swimming, all of the other divers were warming up.”
Along with his incremental individual success, Dian’s teammates naturally look to him to lead. Serving as a tri-captain on both the water polo and swim teams Dian did not shirk those responsibilities, according to Walton. “David has been a central figure for this year’s team, providing leadership and stability throughout the season,” said Walton. “His commitment to training, willingness to take on challenges, and ability to compete across disciplines have made a significant impact on the group. Teammates look to him for his toughness and dedication, and he has played a key role in helping set the tone for the team.”Dian looks back now and can pinpoint when the metamorphosis took place, in terms of going from follower to leader. “It started out as me just being one of the other guys on the team,” he reflected. “At the end of my sophomore year and into the beginning of my junior year, a bunch of kids started coming to me for answers more. Then, by my senior year, I knew that I was the one a bunch of the guys would come to, even before going to the coach.” The support carried over to meets. “Even for the kids who didn’t ask me questions all the time, I was still there for them,” said Dian. “I was running around just as their cheerleader and making sure they feel supported.”
Dian got his start as a youngster diving on a club team. In a true chicken-or-the-egg scenario, swimming barely preceded diving, but diving quickly became Dian’s calling card. He recalled: “Technically, swimming came first. I was on a summer club team. It was the second week of practicing. The diving coach came over and asked, ‘Who wants to also do diving?’ That’s how I got involved in that. So, aside from that one week, I have been doing both around the same amount of time.” And, despite running from practice to practice to practice, he wouldn’t have had it any other way. “Once I got onto that diving board, I never wanted to get off of it,” said Dian.
Dian will swim and dive close to home at La Salle University. “I really wanted to go into education for a major,” said Dian, whose older brother, Braeden, was a runner like dad, and younger brother, Austin, is a freshman diver. “I narrowed it down to La Salle and IUP, knowing that they both had good education programs. I went on visits, and I met with the coaches and the team. I ended up just really liking the coaches and the team at La Salle the best.”
Dian, who has helped with the school’s Special Olympics program, plans on becoming a health/physical education teacher and also a diving coach, as he wants to have the same impact on others that his coaches – from Jeff Faikish to Walton to diving coaches Kyle Goldbacher, Carlene Stumpo and Ian Forlini – have had on him since the age of eight.
To read Dian’s complete profile, please click on the following link: https://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/david-dian-00123850
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