Five former student-athletes and a legendary coach were inducted into the Humboldt State Athletics Hall of Fame a banquet held Friday. They will also be introduced at halftime of today's football game.

Humboldt State head softball and wrestling coach Frank Cheek, who announced his retirement in May following 44 years of service to HSU, leads the list of honorees.

Also chosen for induction by the Hall of Fame Selection Committee were Rodney Dickerson (football, track and field, basketball), Jacob Kadle (football), and Kyle Killingsworth (football). Women's sports inductees are Brandi Harrison (softball) and Jenna Hunter (women's soccer).

Following are brief biographies of the 2013 Humboldt State Athletics Hall of Fame inductees.

Kyle Killingsworth
Kyle Killingsworth was twice honored as an All-American during his four years playing defensive back for Humboldt State. Voted Great Northwest Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year in 2006, Killingsworth compiled 239 career tackles and was also a standout kick and punt returner.

Selected to All-GNAC first team in 2004, 2005 and 2006, Killingsworth played in all 42 games during his four-year career.  He holds the record for longest punt return in HSU history, 93 yards in 2006.

In 2003 Killingsworth recorded a season-best 86 tackles. He averaged 32.9 yards per kick return in 15 returns during 2006, and 22.6 yards per punt return the same season. Also among his career accomplishments were 11 interceptions.

Jacob Kadle
Jacob Kadle, a star at quarterback for the Lumberjacks during the 2000 and 2001 seasons, tops the HSU record book in five categories. Selected as All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference first team signal-caller in 2001, Kadle's accomplishments include the school's highest passing yardage total in a single season, 3,183 yards compiled in 2001.

Also underscoring Kadle's accomplishments is his record for  pass completions in a season (247), and his top five ranking in career TD passes (28), pass completions in a game (34), and career passing yardage, a category in which he ranks fourth with 4,456 achieved in only two seasons.

Kadle lives in Blue Lake, managing his own company, Jacob Kadle Construction. He and his wife, Elizabeth, have one son, Austin, an eighth-grader at Pacific Union School in Arcata.

Jenna Hunter
Jenna Hunter was an All-West Region first team selection in women's soccer following the 2003 season and earned all-conference first team honors in each season she participated from 2000-2003. She is the Lumberjacks' all-time leader in career assists with 27 and No. 2 all-time in goals scored with 31.

Hunter is also among single-season leaders in the HSU women's soccer record book, ranking No. 3 and No. 4  for single-season goals scored with 12 and 11, respectively. She also lists No. 2 in single-season assists with nine.

Currently living in Chico, Hunter is a successful businesswoman as the owner of The Hunter and Farmer catering.

Brandi Harrison

Harrison is listed among the leaders in the Humboldt State record book in 15 statistical categories, including No. 1 on the all-time list in games played with 268. She also ranks second in doubles (57) and walks (126), and is listed fourth all-time in home runs with 33.

Translating her prowess as an athlete into a successful career, she is the operator of Brandi Harrison Hitting & Defense, working as a softball instructor. Along with HSU Hall-of-Famer Andrea Williams-Padilla, Harrison also coaches a 16-and-under ASA travel ball team that advanced to the World Championships in Florida two weeks ago.
    
Rodney Dickerson
Rodney Dickerson, who still holds Humboldt State school records in the discus (173-2 ) and shot put (53-7.5), earned All-America selection in track and field in 1993. He was also a Northern California Athletic Conference first team selection in football in 1992, and recognized with All-NCAC honors in basketball for the 1992-93 season.

Dickerson served an important role as the blocking back for tailback/wide receiver Freeman Baysinger. He was known by his teammates as a charismatic athlete and leader.

After serving for 10 years as a University Police officer at Humboldt State, Dickerson took a position with the Long Beach Police Department, where he currently works. He and his wife, Rachel, live in Long Beach with their two children, Mason and Miles.
    

Frank Cheek
After guiding the Humboldt State softball program to the 1999 national championship, head coach Frank Cheek offered a rather ambiguous response to the inevitable question as to whether he would retire on top. "I'll retire when the time is right," said the former wrestling coach, who was already the winningest coach in Lumberjack history.

When the same question was posed in 2008 following the Jacks' second NCAA Division II title, Cheek admitted that he was uncertain as to what life would hold if he left the field.  "I love what I'm doing," Cheek said. "My daughter (Teresa) wants me to keep coaching, and my wife  (Mary Lou) wants what's best for me. I feel like I'm still a vital part of this program."

Five years later, Cheek ended all speculation by announcing his decision to step away from the game following the Lumberjacks' appearance at the 2013 national championships in Salem, Va. The time is finally right, he said.

Having technically retired in 2003, Cheek continued in the head coach role for the last 10 years as a retired annuitant.

Garnering nearly as many accolades as the achievements he earned, Cheek ended his 25-year career as softball coach after compiling 1,148 wins. He received the sport's highest honor when he was inducted into the National Fastpitch Coaches Association's Hall of Fame in 2009, becoming only the 50th inductee.

Cheek's tenure at Humboldt State actually extends back to 1969, when he joined the staff as wrestling coach. During 20 seasons as head wrestling coach, Cheek saw his athletes win more than 250 matches, and 46 of them achieved NCAA All-American status. Five Lumberjacks claimed individual national championships, leading to Cheek's induction into the California Wrestling Hall of Fame.

In 1989, Humboldt State revived its softball program, naming Cheek head coach. Only a year later, with budget cuts looming, the Lumberjacks discontinued wrestling, leaving Cheek downhearted and discouraged. But instead of dwelling on the negative, he turned his focus to the softball field, and with a standout sophomore pitcher named Teresa Cheek in the circle, Cheek led the Lumberjacks to their first-ever appearance in the NCAA tournament in 1990.

Last spring's success marked the 19th time in 25 seasons that Cheek advanced a team to the NCAA postseason, and the sixth time his squad won the West Region title. Selected 2013 California Collegiate Athletic Association Coach of the Year, Cheek guided the Jacks to the CCAA tournament and regular season titles, marking the 19th conference championship HSU earned during Cheek's tenure.
Individually, Cheek's softball athletes earned 36 All-American awards under his tutelage.

    Prior to his arrival at Humboldt State, Cheek directed the 1968 Ceres High School wrestling program to the No 1 ranking among all schools in California. Success followed him to Arcata High School, where his 1988 squad was also ranked the No. 1 team in the state at the AA level.

Perhaps Cheek's greatest accomplishment was convincing Mary Lou Kuka to marry him in 1959.  Coach Cheek and Mary Lou, a nurse for 40 years, enjoy spending time with their daughter and grandson Sean at their Cabin on Trinity Lake.