BRIDGEPORT, Pa. -- Diane Stein Swigart, a four-time collegiate All-America performer for Slippery Rock University women's water polo teams in the early 1980s, will be inducted into the Collegiate Water Polo Association Hall of Fame April 24 as part of the 2009 Women's Eastern Championship hosted by Harvard University.
A standout collegiate and international goalie, she set the record for most blocks in the first Collegiate National Championship, a non-NCAA sanctioned event, in 1980 and was named to the all-tournament team. In addition, she was named to eight all-tournament teams in five years, a noteworthy achievement due to the fact she never played water polo prior to college.
Outside of her collegiate career, Swigart was a three-time (1979, 1980, 1982) AAU All-America selection in the USA Water Polo National Outdoor Championships, where she played for both Industry Hills and City of Commerce in California.
"I am truly honored and humbled by this award," Swigart said in a press release issued by the CWPA office. "I played against so many great athletes that to be singled out amongst them is incredible. To be selected as one of the best when there is a wide range of people they could have chosen from is great."
A standout international player, she was named to the United States National Team in 1979 and also competed at the World Cup Tournament in Merced, California.
She maintained her involvement on the international level with the team in 1980 and traveled to the 1982 World Cup Tournament in Ecuador helping the United States "A" team earn a bronze medal.
Following college, Swigart continued to compete and later led the East squad to a second-place finish at the 1984 Olympic Sports Festival.
"I accept this as a tribute to my family, who provided me with constant emotional and financial support, and my coach, Dr. Richard Hunkler, who never gave up on me and taught me to believe that all things are possible," Swigart said.
She joins Hunkler, a 2002 inductee, and SRU players Lynn Comer Kachmarik (2003), John Barrett (2004), Sue Bow Kolczak (2005) and Robbie Larson Bova (2006) as members of the CWPA Hall of Fame.
All told, The Rock has accounted for six of the 15 inductees into the Hall.
A native of Lower Burrell and a 1977 graduate of Valley High School, Swiart was inducted into the Allegheny-Kiski Valley Sports Hall of Fame in 1997.
Currently, she teaches seventh-grade mathematics and coaches girls' volleyball at Valley Middle School. She also served as Valley High School's varsity swimming coach for over 20 seasons.
