It was quite a tense time before the current school year began for Saucon Valley head coach Matt Brown, his coaching staff and team members, because there was a real possibility that their 6' 8” center, Eric Frans, might not be playing for the Panthers. Early last summer Eric's father, who works for the government of Nepal, had been told his job would take him south to Georgia. Fortunately for both Eric and Saucon Valley basketball fans, his father's job in this area was extended and the dreaded relocation did not occur!

Junior High Head Coach Don Benner commented about how sad it would have been to lose Eric, who the coaching staff first met as a freshman without experience playing basketball. Over time, Saucon Valley coaches helped him develop into a formidable player, which meant losing him to another basketball program would have been quite a blow.

A recent highlight of Eric's career happened Jan. 13, when he scored a career high of 30 points in the Panthers' overtime 78 -74 win over Notre Dame-Green Pond. Eric was not aware of the point total until his teammates told him about achieving the scoring milestone in the locker room after the game. 

Eric, however, said he is not overly concerned with achieving personal scoring goals.

“Many times people think I had a poor game because they look at the box score and see that I did not score many points, but I look to pass off to teammates when the defense concentrates on me, so my value to the team is much more than the number of points I score," he said.

Eric continues to learn and develop as a basketball player and would like to help the Saucon Valley team achieve its ultimate goal: to win a Colonial League championship. He said his favorite professional players are the Denver Nuggets' Carmelo Anthony and the New York Knicks' Amar'e Stoudemire.

"Eric has worked extremely hard in the weight room and on the court to become a better player," Coach Brown said. "He is a great kid to coach and always gives 100 percent."

The Panthers are currently 10-3 in league competition. Of their three league losses, two were extremely close. On Dec. 18, the Panthers lost to Wilson in overtime, 56-55, and on Feb. 3 they lost to Salisbury, 63-61. The team's biggest loss this season, and an exception, was their Jan. 13 loss to Bangor, 74-50. With one more win the team will qualify for postseason play and there is no telling how far they might advance from that point.  

Eric said he likes to play volleyball for fun, and is also a member of the track team, competing in the javelin, discus and shot events.

A member of Saucon Valley High School's chapter of the National Honor Society, Eric lists his favorite subjects as math and biology. He said he intends to study pre-med at either the Philadelphia Institute of Science or one of the Pennsylvania state universities such as West Chester, East Stroudsburg or Kutztown.

His favorite food is rice and for relaxation he plays the piano and also likes to compose music.

Eric has a younger sister, Vanessa, and is the son of Ishmael and Josephine Frans.