Hall of Fame
Highlights: Three-time first team All-PSAC selection, ranks second in program history in on-base percentage, sixth in slugging percentage and 15th in triples.
Samsa was a three-year letterwinner at SRU that also earned first team All-PSAC honors as an outfielder in all three seasons. He helped lead The Rock to a PSAC title and NCAA Tournament appearance in 1982 and helped the program to post an overall record of 72-37-2 during his three seasons. Over that stretch, Samsa hit .363 with 93 runs scored, 14 home runs, 101 RBIs and 18 stolen bases. His on-base percentage of .487 ranks second all-time at SRU, while his slugging percentage of .626 ranks sixth. He also ranks 15th in career triples (8), 17th in walks (67) and 20th in batting average (.363).
Following his graduation from Slippery Rock, Samsa embarked on a successful career in human services. He worked as the director for intellectual and developmental disabilities at the NHS Allegheny Center, managing group housing and the day program. He kept his passion for athletics by serving as an assistant coach with the Turtle Creek High School football team and the Community College of Allegheny County Boyce baseball team, in addition to working as a high school softball umpire. He also spent 10 years as the president of the Turtle Creek Athletic Association.
After a four-year battle with pancreatic cancer, Samsa passed away in 2017. He and his wife, Kathleen, were married for 31 years. They had three children, John, Sean and Katla.
