Player Profile: Brooke Weidman

If you were to ask a SUNY Cortland’s sports fan one player that epitomizes the dominance of the SUNY Cortland softball team over the last three years, most fans would answer with former senior captain, Katie Finch, the two-time ECAC Upstate New York D.III softball pitcher of the year.

One unsung hero that is listed at #5 in the Cortland softball guide, playing centerfield behind Finch over the last three seasons going into her senior year that plays like Joe DiMaggio is Brooke Weidman.

(Via cortlandreddragons.com)

 “She was a huge asset to our team. I did not get a ton of action out in center when she was on the mound. She was awesome, a great pitcher and I was probably her number one fan out in center. We are going to miss her,” exclaimed Weidman in regards to the departure of Katie Finch.

The senior centerfielder is communications major with a sports management minor. Weidman is a 2007 graduate of Wayland-Cohocton high school where she was a member of the National Honor Society as well as the Business Honor Society receiving the New York State Lottery Scholarship. Weidman was a five-year member of the varsity softball team winning back-to-back league titles as well as being a three-year starter in soccer and basketball.

“I grew in Perkinsville, New York; it’s a very small town. I had to play travel ball in Rochester because there was really no leagues around me. I started out in tee-ball, then we had Cinderella league and we didn’t have a little league softball, so we made our own league playing neighboring towns. I then went on to start playing junior varsity and varsity softball in high school,” says Weidman.

The passion for the game of softball can be attributed to a family tradition according to Weidman, “My dad played when he was in school and we’ve always been a sports family. It was a good program in my town to start out with and I always stuck with it. Softball was something I was good at, so I pursued it and it was just my favorite sport. I knew I wanted to play softball in college. “

Centerfield was not even Weidman’s true position going into high school before being recruited by SUNY Cortland, “I was actually a pitcher in high school. I was brought up in varsity in eighth grade to play centerfield, but as people graduated I picked up pitching again on the varsity team. My favorite position is centerfield. “

In her freshmen year of 2008, Weidman played in 49 games, starting in 41, batting .270 with 17 runs, 2 doubles, 1 triple and 9 runs batted in. The highlight of the season came in the NCAA D. III World Series against Wisconsin-Whitewater where Weidman had the game-winning hit with two-outs in the bottom of the seventh.

“Coming in as freshmen I was so nervous. I hardly every talked. I didn’t want to mess up. I started in left field and I’m use to playing center field, so it was something different. In the Wisconsin-Whitewater game, I had actually struck out three times before and it was our last time up, so it just an amazing feeling that I’ll always remember very clearly.”

In 2009, Weidman earned first team all-region and All-SUNYAC honors in route to being selected to ESPN Magazine’s College Division I All-District All-Academic third team while starting in all 53 games batting .341 with five doubles and eight runs batted in.

In regards to her tremendous 2009 season Weidman says, “It was an honor, I mean I still impress myself and not to sound cocky or anything. I do not think about any of the accolades when I am out there. I just play and have fun. I think obviously academics come before sports. It is important to stay on top of your schoolwork and also have fun playing the sport that you love.”

Last season Weidman earned all-region honors, starting in all 46 games, batting .358 with 30 runs and 14 runs batted in. The highlight of last season occurred during a season-opening 13-game hitting streak.

“We start our season down in Florida and I always feel I play better in warm weather. I love playing in warm weather. Starting out with a hit in that first at-bat just only lets my confidence grow even more. “

Weidman attributes much of her success at SUNY Cortland to the programs most winning coach, Julie Lenhart, saying, “I love her. She is a great coach that always keeps a successful program running.  It is so competitive and we work really hard. We always have a team saying or logo every year. Last year was ‘One’ as in playing for each other.  This year we are focusing on the team as a whole.”

Weidman claims that New York Yankees power-hitting second basemen Robinson Cano is her favorite baseball player as she looks to emulate the 2010 American League All-Star from a hitting standpoint this season, “I would like to hit a homerun. I have never hit a homerun in my career and being a senior this year to just get that one homer would be great, but I am a slap hitter, so it is very difficult.”

The Red Dragons are 123-30 overall as well as 54-4 in the SUNYAC in Weidman’s three year career appearing in the D.III World Series in 2008 as well as 2009 and in the NCAA Tournament in all three of those years.

The goal every season for the Red Dragons softball team will be winning the D.III World Series. That goal will start one game at a time explains Weidman, “Every game we would like to think is a championship game. Inside everyone there always is that bigger game.”

For more student athlete interviews tune into Around the Dragon every Friday from 2-4 p.m. with Michael Millstein and Steve Cuce for everything Cortland sports on WSUC 90.5 FM and www.cortland.edu/wsuc.