2010 WWU Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony
Invitation to WWU Athletics Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony 
Jan. 2, 2010
BELLINGHAM, Wash. - Four new members, three of whom won school Athlete of the Year honors, and one who is now in charge of a major university athletics program, will be inducted into the Western Washington University Athletics Hall of Fame on Saturday, Feb. 6.
The four are Jerry Joyce, a three-sport athlete at Western who went on to a 30-year career as a teacher-coach, then earned recognition for wrestling officiating; Dwayne Kirkley, a men's basketball guard who led the Vikings to the NAIA National Tournament in 1994; Gina Sampson, a women's basketball center who was named Western's Female Athlete of the Decade for the 1990s, and Jim Sterk, who set a school season record for tackles as a football linebacker and is now director of athletics at Washington State University.
The four inductees bring the hall's membership to 113. The ceremony on Feb. 6, which begins at 2 p.m., will take place in the Concert Hall at the WWU Performing Arts Center. The hall's newest members also will be honored at halftime of the WWU men's and women's home basketball games that day.
The induction ceremony is open to the public with no admission charge. Those wishing to attend are asked to RSVP by phone (360-650-6525) or email (dorothy.goldsmith@wwu.edu).
Jerry Joyce
Joyce, who passed away in 2004 at age 64, was named Western's Athlete of the Year in 1960, when he competed in football, track, and wrestling for the Vikings. In 1959, he had personal-best times of 9.8 seconds in the 100 yard dash and 22.1 seconds in the 220 as a sprinter in track.
Joyce had a 30-year career as a high school physical educator and coach, retiring in 1994. After earning his bachelor's degree at Western in 1963, Joyce taught five years at West Junior High School in Puyallup before returning to WWU for a year. He then worked two years at Mount Si High School in North Bend, four at Sehome High School in Bellingham and 19 at Puyallup High School.
Joyce was a head coach in track and field for 16 years, directed cross country for nine years and was an assistant coach in football for 12 years.
At Puyallup High, he posted a 105-9 dual meet record in boys cross country (1980-89), winning six South Puget Sound League championships, three West Central District titles and placing second at state in 1982, third in 1981 and fourth in 1984. His girls cross country (1981-89) squads had an 81-22 dual meet record and won two league crowns.
Joyce directed track teams to 27 dual meet wins while at Sehome and 50 dual meet victories at Puyallup.
Joyce was a high school wrestling official for 10 years, being named the 1980 Western Washington Officiating Association Official of the Year and 1982 Puget Sound Official of the Year. He officiated at Washington State Class 3A meets in 1978 and 1981.
Joyce was instrumental in helping create the Washington State Cultural Exchange Program, which takes high school student athletes in different sports from the state of Washington to foreign countries, and was active in the organization from 1985 to 2002. He headed 19 trips to countries such as Ireland, England, Korea, China, Japan and Viet Nam.
A graduate of Everett High School in 1958, Joyce was a three-sport athlete for the Seagulls. He is survived by his wife, LaVerne, son Jade and daughter Jody (Wickett). LaVerne and Jade are both WWU graduates, and Joyce's granddaughter, Shelby, is a freshman at Western, and his grandson, Brady, is a junior at Emerald Ridge High School in Puyallup.
Dwayne Kirkley
Kirkley, a 6-foot point guard, had one of the greatest seasons in school history as a senior in 1993-94, averaging 20.4 points, 6.0 assists, 4.4 rebounds and 3.2 steals. He led the Vikings to a 24-7 record, first place in the Pacific Northwest Region 1 (11-1) and the opening round of the NAIA National Tournament, where they lost in overtime to Oklahoma Baptist.
A team captain, Kirkley was a third-team NAIA All-American, PNW Region 1 Player of the Year and WWU Male Athlete of the Year. His steal total of 99 was a school record and his 631 points and 187 assists fell just short of the WWU marks at that time. He led the region in steals and was second in both points and assists.
Kirkley scored 20 or more points 17 times that season, and tallied over 30 four times in becoming just the second two-year player in school history to score 1,000 career points, finishing with 1,008.
Originally from Virginia Beach, Virginia, Kirkley transferred to Western from Centralia CC where he was the NWAACC West Region co-MVP as a sophomore. He was an all-state pick at Radford High School in Honolulu, Hawaii.
A member of the WWU All-Century basketball team (1900-99), Kirkley went from Western to Sydney, Australia, where he played two years for the Sutherland Sharks. He then played for teams in Indonesia, Japan, China and Germany and currently is coaching in Hong Kong.
Gina Sampson (Steinauer)
As a senior at Western, Sampson led the Vikings to a 26-7 record and the quarterfinals of the 1996 NAIA National Tournament. She was a first-team NAIA Division I and Kodak College Division All-American, Pacific Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year and the WWU Female Athlete of the Year for the second straight time.
That season, Sampson averaged 17.5 points, 12.9 rebounds and 2.2 blocked shots, her rebound total of 425 breaking the school record by nearly 100 (94). Her rebound average ranked fifth nationally and led the PNWAC.
Among Sampson's 18 school records were career marks for rebounds (1,277), steals (284) and double-doubles (56, points and rebounds), and single-game standards for points (42) and rebounds (25). She finished second on Western's career list in points (1,786) and third in blocked shots (146).
Following her playing career and one year as a Western student assistant coach, Sampson was a player-coach during the 1997-98 season for an Australian professional team in the Continental Basketball Association. She was named the CBA's National Player of the Year and Eastern Conference Most Valuable Player, leading the country in rebounding and playing on a team from Australia that toured the United States and competed against NCAA I schools.
Sampson, who received her bachelor's degree in sociology at WWU in 1996, was a full-time assistant coach for the Vikings from 1998 to 2001. During her three-year tenure, Western reached the semifinals at the 2000 NCAA II Elite Eight. A graduate of Redmond High Schoo1, Sampson is a member of Western's All-Century basketball team (1900-99).
Sampson, who is a counselor for an international relocation firm, is married to Orlondo Steinauer, a consensus All-America football defensive back at Western, who played 13 years in the Canadian Football League. They have three children, Kiana 11, Rheyna 5 and Taeya 4.
Jim Sterk
The 53-year-old Sterk is in his 10th year as director of athletics at Washington State, overseeing unprecedented growth and success in a 17-sport NCAA I program that competes in the Pacific-10 Conference.
Sterk currently is the chair of the Pac-10 Athletic Directors committee. He has also served on the prestigious NCAA Championship Competition cabinet.
In 2006-07, WSU was awarded with three national honors. They included being recognized as a Program of Excellence by the Division I-A Athletic Directors' Association, and receiving the Diversity in Athletics Award presented by the Laboratory for Diversity in Sport at Texas A&M University and the Opportunity Award for the West Region presented by the Women's Sports Foundation. Over the past 10 consecutive semesters WSU student-athletes have earned a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0, on a 4.0 scale.
On the field, Cougar Athletics have enjoyed extraordinary achievements during Sterk's tenure. In the three years prior to 2009-10, WSU Athletics have been represented in NCAA post-season play in 12 of its 17 sports. The men's basketball team had three consecutive post-season appearances including back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2007 and 2008 for the first time in school history. The football program put together three consecutive 10-win seasons from 2001to 2003 and the women's rowing program earned five NCAA Championship appearances, placing fourth in 2006, the highest finish ever by a WSU women's team in NCAA post-season competition in any sport.
In addition to the student-athletes' academic and athletic success during his tenure, Sterk has also presided over exceptional increases in financial support for student-athletes and overseen a significant increase in the department's operating budget.
Facility improvements have also been among projects Sterk has tackled at the Pullman-based institution. They included major renovations of the football and baseball facilities and an ambitious capital improvement plan that will enhance many other WSU sport facilities.
Sterk, who was born and raised in Whatcom County, is a graduate of Nooksack Valley High School, where he was a four-sport letter winner. He played on the Pioneers' Class A state championship basketball team as a senior in 1974.
Sterk received his bachelor of arts degree at Western in 1980, earning four letters in football and one in basketball. He was credited with a school-record 164 tackles during the 1977 season, being a first-team NAIA District 1 all-star, team captain and MVP in helping the Vikings to the district championship game.
Sterk obtained his master's degree in sports administration from Ohio University in 1986. His professional career has included positions at North Carolina, Maine (Assistant Athletic Director for finance), Seattle Pacific (Associate Athletic Director), Tulane (Senior Associate Athletic Director), and Portland State, where he was director of athletics for five years before becoming the WSU athletic director in June of 2000.
Sterk and wife Debi have three daughters, Ashley 20, Amy 17 and Abby 14.
Jim Sterk to be inducted into WWU Athletics Hall of Fame
Washington State University Director of Athletics Jim Sterk will be inducted into the Western Washington University Athletics Hall of Fame, Saturday, Feb. 6, Western Washington University announced Sunday, Jan. 3.
"It is a real honor to be inducted in WWU's Hall of Fame," said Sterk, who is one of four members of the 2010 class. "I was fortunate enough to play with a great group of players and coaches during my time at Western. The friendships and experiences still last after 30-plus years."
Sterk will be inducted in a 2 p.m. ceremony at the Concert Hall in the WWU Performing Arts Center. He will also be honored at halftime of the WWU men's and women's home basketball games that day.
Those wishing to attend the ceremony may RSVP to Dorothy Goldsmith at 360-650-6525 or Dorothy.goldsmith@wwu.edu. There is no charge to attend and everyone attending will be given tickets to that night's men's and women's basketball games.
Sterk received his Bachelor of Arts degree at Western in 1980, earning four letters in football and one in basketball. He was credited with a school-record 164 tackles during the 1977 season, being a first-team NAIA District 1 all-star, team captain and MVP in helping the Vikings to the district championship game.
Born and raised in Whatcom County, Sterk is a graduate of Nooksack Valley High School, where he was a four-sport letter winner. He played on the Pioneers' Class A state championship basketball team as a senior in 1974.
Sterk is in his 10th year as director of athletics at Washington State, overseeing unprecedented growth and success in a 17-sport NCAA I program that competes in the Pacific-10 Conference.
Over the past 10 consecutive semesters WSU student-athletes have earned a cumulative grade point average of at least 3.0 on a 4.0 scale and in 2006-07, WSU was awarded with three national honors. They included being recognized as a Program of Excellence by the Division I-A Athletic Directors' Association, and receiving the Diversity in Athletics Award presented by the Laboratory for Diversity in Sport at Texas A&M University and the Opportunity Award for the West Region presented by the Women's Sports Foundation.
On the field, Cougar Athletics have enjoyed extraordinary achievements during Sterk's tenure. In the three years prior to the 2009-10 season, WSU Athletics have been represented in NCAA post-season play in 12 of its 17 sports. The men's basketball team had three consecutive post-season appearances including back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances in 2007 and 2008 for the first time in school history. The football program put together three consecutive 10-win seasons from 2001to 2003 and the women's rowing program earned five NCAA Championship appearances, placing fourth in 2006, the highest finish ever by a WSU women's team in NCAA post-season competition in any sport.
The on the field achievements have continued into the fall portion of the 2009-10 season with NCAA appearances by volleyball and soccer as well as cross country's Lisa Egami's appearance at the NCAA Championships.
In addition to the student-athletes' academic and athletic success during his tenure, Sterk has also presided over exceptional increases in financial support for student-athletes and overseen a significant increase in the department's operating budget.
Facility improvements have also been among projects Sterk has tackled at WSU including major renovations of the football and baseball facilities, the development of an indoor rowing facility, and a hydrotherapy system.
Sterk currently is the chair of the Pac-10 Athletic Directors committee. He has also served on the prestigious NCAA Championship Competition cabinet. Sterk and wife Debi have three daughters, Ashley 20, Amy 17 and Abby 14.
