Cory Weissman's story is one of courage and determination, with a storybook ending too good to be true.
On Feb. 11, 2012, Weissman returned to the basketball floor for his first game since suffering a stroke during an offseason workout nearly three years earlier. His entire left side had been paralyzed but after learning to walk all over again, Weissman returned to the team during his sophomore campaign. Though he was unable to play in a game over the next three seasons, he continued to work incredibly hard in his recovery. Then the night before Senior Day, head coach George Petrie decided to give Weissman the start as the Bullets took on Washington College in Bream Gymnasium.
After being introduced to a rousing ovation, Weissman left the court immediately after the tip-off. He had achieved his goal of returning to the court, but his story was far from over. With less than a minute remaining and the Bullets holding a 19-point advantage, Petrie inserted Weissman back into the game. After the Shoremen scored on lay-up with 19 seconds left, Washington head coach Rob Nugent called a timeout and instructed his team to foul Weissman, who had not scored a point in any of the three games he had played for the Bullets as a freshman.
With 17.0 seconds showing, Weissman toed the foul line for the first time in his career and missed the first shot. But his second attempt found nothing but net, igniting the crowd into a frenzy. Weissman was in the record books as having scored a point for the Gettysburg College men’s basketball team.
Weissman’s memorable day and Washington’s act of sportsmanship has drawn significant media attention, including a five-minute television piece that aired on Feb. 25 during ESPN’s “College Gameday.” A full list of media coverage can be found below.
Weissman encourages correspondence with those facing similar challenges and can be reached at weisco01@gettysburg.edu.
Media inquiries may be sent to Braden Snyder, Athletic Communications Director, at bsnyder@gettysburg.edu.
Cory Weissman Media Coverage
One Hour with Hope (7/17/12)
ESPN.com ("Penn family find their inspiration" by Dana O'Neil, 4/25/12)
NCAA Champion Magazine ("Caring college coaches are not the exception" by Mike Davenport, Spring 2012)
Gettysburg Times ("Gettysburg College student, basketball player recovering from major stroke" by Tommy Riggs, 3/5/12)
Newark Star-Ledger ("He got his shot, then made it count" by Bob Braun, 3/5/12)
Sydney Morning Herald (by Fitz Simons, 3/3/12)
Deseret News ("Extraordinary courage - and classy sportsmanship - on the line" by Joseph Walker, 3/2/12)
ESPN Radio "The Sporting Life" (3/2-4/12)
ESPN "Outside the Lines" (3/1/12)
Sports Illustrated (2/27/12 issue, "Faces in the Crowd" page)
Sacramento Bee ("Sportsmanship makes a point in D-III game" by Joe Davidson, 2/25/12)
ESPN "College Gameday" (2/25/12)
ESPN.com ("A story of triumph, sportsmanship" by Greg Garber, 2/24/12)
JTown Magazine Online ("Cory Weissman, JMHS Alumni, completes basketball comeback after stroke" by Matt Genovese, 2/22/12)
SI.com ("Washington College basketball shows another way to win" by Frank Deford, 2/22/12)
NPR "Morning Edition" ("When There's More To Winning Than Winning" by Frank Deford, 2/22/12)
Deadspin.com (2/18/12)
Harrisburg Patriot-News ("Cory Weissman overcomes stroke to play on Senior Day for Gettysburg College" by Brad Kane, 2/17/12)
New York Times "Quad Blog" ("At Gettysburg, a Shot More Than Three Years in the Making" by Pete Barrett '15, 2/17/12)
NCAA.com ("Weissman’s return punctuated by opponent’s goodwill gesture" by Pat Coleman, 2/17/12)
D3hoops.com "Hoopsville" (by Dave McHugh, 2/16/12)
Gettysburgian (by Pete Barrett '15, 2/16/12)
ESPN Top Plays (2/16/12)
Philadelphia Daily News ("'Unforgettable' act of sportsmanship" by Bill Fleischman '60, 2/16/12)
Yahoo! Sports ("Act of sportsmanship highlights player’s return from a stroke" by Jeff Eisenberg, 2/15/12)
Baltimore Sun ("Teams come together to create memory for college senior" by Kevin Cowherd, 2/15/12)
WMAR-ABC 2 (Baltimore) (2/14/12)
NCAA.org ("Sportsmanship wins Gettysburg-Washington game" 2/14/12)
Washington College (2/14/12)
D3hoops.com ("Classy call highlights Weissman's return" by Pat Coleman, 2/13/12)
WHP-CBS 21 (Harrisburg) (by Chris Fischer, 2/11/12)
Video clip of Weissman's two free throw attempts
