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 May 8, 2026)
In less than one month, Ava Frederick will officially be a Wissahickon High School graduate. In barely one week, she will pack up her glove and cleats for the last time. It’s a bit overwhelming for Frederick to realize that soon, her time playing the sport that has been such a massive part of her life for as long as she can remember, will be over. But if you’re expecting any tears, look elsewhere. Frederick is having way too much fun to feel bad about hanging up the Trojans’ uniform. “I’ve been playing since T-ball, since I was 4 or 5 years old,” Frederick said. “It’s a little tough to process, for sure. I’ve been coached by my parents, played on a travel team, high school team, it’s hard to accept that it’s all coming to an end. But coming into the final week of the season, I’ve realized that I’ve played softball so long, I’m just trying to have fun. For me, it’s not about winning or losing. It’s about making these last memories before softball comes to an actual end. We just played Plymouth Whitemarsh (a 6-1 PW victory), and I think that game was the most fun I’ve had playing softball. I realized that it’s almost done, but it’s nothing to cry over. It’s the time to really enjoy the time I have left.”
Her final games will cap off a remarkable high school career for the four-year starter who has played eight positions in her time as a Trojan. “Ava really is a special kid,” said Wissahickon softball coach Mike Borkowski. “She knows how to not fail, and she’s really good at getting better when things don’t go right. She likes to have fun out there, but at the same time, she has a lot of pride. She does not like to lose. She wants to do her best and she wants the team to do its best, and she’s very motivated by doing what’s best for the team.”
Frederick’s journey around the diamond began on the mound. “Ava came in as a freshman, said she could pitch, and at the time, we were stuck for pitching,” Borkowski said. “We don’t get a lot of pitching prospects, so she jumped in to pitch. She got hit around a little as a freshman – which isn’t uncommon when you’re always facing older, more experienced batters – but she got a couple wins for us. Then at one point she said to me, ‘We’re short at outfield, I play the outfield, you know.’ She played right field freshman year and has also played center field and left field.”
During Frederick’s sophomore year, there were holes around the infield throughout the season. And Borkowski knew just who he could use to plug those holes. “Ava is always willing to help the team any way she can, and anywhere she can,” he said. “Her sophomore year, we had injuries in the infield. Ava played third base a couple games, first base a couple games, and I knew I could play her wherever.” In fact, there’s only one spot on the diamond that Frederick – who earned Honorable Mention All-League honors at second base as a junior – hasn’t played. But if she were to be asked to get behind the plate …“You best bet I would put those pads and gear on,” Frederick said. “If coach needs me to play anywhere, I will play anywhere. I will get behind the plate and rule the diamond.”
The only senior on this year’s squad as well as a two-year captain, Frederick has relied on her experience to lift the rest of the team, which features seven juniors who will step into her position as leaders next year. “As a captain and the only senior, that can be a tough position to be in,” Borkowski said. “But Ava is so good working with the younger players. She’s very encouraging to the younger kids, and it’s because she’s been in their shoes. She’s been there, done that, bought the T-shirt.”
In addition to softball, Frederick is involved in WissLink, an organization that helps introduce freshmen to the school and help get them involved in the high school community. She is also a member of WissPals, a club that sees students spend time with students with special needs. In the fall, Frederick will head to University of Delaware, where she plans to major in psychology.
To read Frederick’s complete story, please slick on the following link: https://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/ava-frederick-00124774
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of May 8, 2026)
Austin Allen just might be the best three-sport athlete you've never heard of. It turns out the Harry S Truman senior excels in two sports that don’t find their way into the headlines – golf and bowling – and a third for a baseball team that has struggled to win consistently in recent years. The Truman senior, however, caught the eye of college scouts at a Prep Baseball Report (PBR) Showcase last summer, and that’s all it took. The senior southpaw will be taking his talents to St. Bonaventure this fall (more on that later).
Brian Sinkiewicz got the idea that Allen was the owner of an arm baseball coaches would covet at – of all things – Truman’s annual dodgeball tournament the day before Thanksgiving break. “I had heard about Austin when he was in middle school,” the Truman baseball coach said. “Austin’s group – their freshmen year – was my first year as head coach. I was a referee of the dodgeball tournament, which is a rite of passage at Truman. I remember Austin was on one of the teams, and he threw a dodgeball across the gym, and I am like, ‘Oh my – okay, I got it. This is awesome.’”
Coaching Allen has been an opportunity Sinkiewicz would not have wanted to miss. “What’s cool about Austin is his temperament,” the Tigers’ coach said. “He’s never too high, he’s never too low. He’s just very calm, very coachable. His first year, we made the playoffs and then the last couple years have been a little bit of a struggle. It’s easy to point fingers, and Austin has never done that. He’s been an amazing teammate. Maybe he hasn’t gotten the support that some other pitchers get in our league from their team when it comes to defense and offensive output, but Austin’s never showed a teammate up.”
That would never be a consideration for a student-athlete who has nothing but good things to say about his experience at Truman (and that includes a baseball team that won just three games). “I feel like the outlook on Truman from everybody outside is just so negative,” Allen said. “But honestly, I’ve been here four years, and I wouldn’t want to go anywhere else.”
Allen’s fortunes on the diamond took a dramatic turn last summer on his trip to the PA State Games. “It was crazy honestly because before the scout day, I didn’t really have any college interest,” he said. “Then I go there, I got like Millersville, and then the guy who runs it (Dan Cevette) actually posted a video (on X). It said –‘I’m ALL in on Austin Allen.” Cevette’s comment was in response to a video tweeted of the then 6-2, 200-pound rising senior showing his stuff on the mound. “It was kind of blowing up on X, and from there, it was like every time I checked my phone, there was more college scouts,” he said. “It was pretty crazy.”
Allen chose St. Bonaventure from a list of schools that included St. John’s, Old Dominion, Albany and Quinnipiac. As for Allen’s strengths as a pitcher, there are many, according to his coach. “He’s a southpaw, and what is great is that he’s just got so much movement on the ball,” Sinkiewicz said. “If you watch Austin pitch on the side, it doesn’t do justice, and you’re like, ‘Man, I can’t believe all these kids are swinging and missing,’ and then you stand behind the backstop, you notice that his two-seam fastball just runs like crazy. When he throws his changeup, it drops off the table, and then he mixes in his curveball. His changeup is significantly slower than his fastball. It’s a strength where when guys get on his fastball a little bit, we move to another pitch, and he’s just very versatile in that aspect. He just has such a fluid movement. I think he’s also one of the better outfielders. When he throws even from the outfield, it looks like a two-seam fastball coming to the catcher. It’s unbelievable.”
When his coaches talk about Allen, it’s not just his talent that stands out. “He gets it, he totally sees it all,” Truman golf coach Charlie Bachman said. “He’s so ahead of himself. He’s just a great kid.” Added Sinkiewicz, “I don’t have enough great things to say about Austin. He’s always just so positive.’ It’s a trait you have to have as a pitcher, especially if you want to succeed at the next level. You have to have a short memory, you have to be a good teammate, and I am so excited to see what’s in store for him at the next level. I think he’s going to do a lot of great things.”
To read Allen’s complete story, please click on the following link: https://suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/austin-allen-00124775
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