The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Patriots hold on to top Pirates
As the Cornerstone Christian girls basketball team headed to the bench for a timeout with four minutes remaining in its game at Perry on Jan. 17, the Patriots couldn’t help but to think back to last year.
“Come on,” one of the players barked. “If we want this game, we’ve got to suck it up.”
Tired and worn down, the visiting Patriots came up with the answers down the stretch and held on for a 48-42 win over the Pirates, avenging a nonconference loss to Perry last season when Cornerstone let a double-digit lead with two minutes remaining evaporate into a loss.
“That was frustrating,” said Cornerstone sophomore Madison Cloonan of last year’s loss. “We had a lead and let it slip. I thought about that loss a couple of nights, honestly. It bothered me.
“It felt get to get the ‘W’ this time.”
Cloonan had a gamehigh 15 points and added a game-changing block late in the game to help propel her team to the win.
With the victory, Cornerstone improved to 10-4. Perry fell to 11-2 after absorbing its second loss in a row, coming on the heels of a weekend loss to Geneva.
“We are a small school, but we have big dreams,” said CCA coach Lisa Stopp, whose schedule features one Division IV team. “It tests us. (The schedule) put us in a game where you’re up five, you lose the lead and you’ve got to come up with something special.” The Patriots did just that. Cornerstone had an eightpoint lead in the third quarter, only to see Perry battle back and tie the game at 33-33 on an Emily Holroyd shot.
When Claire Dolan drained a 3 at the buzzer to end the third, Perry only trailed 37-36.
But that’s as close as the Pirates got. When the Patriots’ identical twins, Michaela and Madison Cloonan, hit back-to-back baskets midway through the fourth, the Patriots extended their lead to 4437, with an Arianna Berry charity shot making it an eight-point game.
Perry got a 3 from Elle Infalvi and a bucket from Holroyd on a nifty dish from Madyson Hacking, but 45-42 was as close as the Pirates could get.
CCA sophomore Kaleigh Tyna made 3 of 4 free throws in the final 20 seconds to keep Perry safely at bay.
“It feels great to get back into it,” said Tyna, who missed the first 12 games of the season after transferring from CVCA. “I practice those free throws.
“This is a good win. I knew we had confidence coming in.”
Perry coach Brindi Kandel lamented her team’s missed opportunities. Although Dolan shook loose for 14 points, 12 coming in the third quarter, in a comeback effort after being held scoreless in the loss to Geneva, turnovers and intensity issues hurt Perry the coach said.
“I think it’s definitely a character test,” Kandel said. “We’re going to get everybody’s best shot. If we can’t overcome the intensity and pressure they put on us, this is going to keep happening.”
Dolan’s 14 and Anna Sorine’s 10, including a 3-pointer at the halftime buzzer, led Perry. Madyson Hacking had seven points, eight rebounds, three assists and two steals.
Perry hosts Harvey this weekend in an attempt to break its two-game slide
“Anytime Claire is scoring, it helps us get into a rhythm,” Kandel said. “We need to do a better job of getting the ball inside, too, and using our weapons in the post. We’ll keep working on that as well.”
Aside from Madison Cloonan’s 15 points and 10 rebounds, Lauren Harris had nine on three 3-pointers, and Michaela Cloonan had eight points, seven rebounds and five assists.
Cornerstone has a few toughies coming up, too, including games against Hathaway Brown and Lake Ridge Academy in the immediate future.
“I love it,” Madison Cloonan said of Division IV Cornerstone’s tough schedule. “It really challenges us and get us ready for the playoffs. I hope it helps us go the distance this year.”