The News Herald (Willoughby, OH)
Cloonans savor journey that almost wasn’t
Tracking the basketball as it soared through the air, Michaela Cloonan ranged to her right and hauled in the errant pass like a center fielder flagging down a fly ball.
Dribbling up the court in transition, the senior guard from Cornerstone Christian briefly glimpsed to her right, then zipped the ball to her left, where a teammate caught the ball in stride and laid it in for an easy two points.
The play screamed of chemistry — like two players who knew what the other was thinking before the thought even entered their minds. Like they had been together forever. That’s because they have been together forever.
The girl on the other end of the pass from Michaela Cloonan? Her identical twin sister Madison.
The pair of All-Ohio basketball players has been making such plays for more than a decade now, to the point where coaches, opponents and fans have come to expect such productivity.
But few know how close that dynamic duo came to being a solo act. An unimaginable solo act.
For 73 terrifying seconds, the Cloonan twins almost weren’t.
Standing in a delivery room in Hillcrest Hospital on the twins’ day of birth, Patrick Cloonan’s heart sank as he held the lifeless body of his newborn Madison in his hands.
“Horrifying,” the father of five said, recalling his emotions in the minutes after his twins were born in 2002. The first — Michaela — was fine. The second — Madison — wasn’t. The larger of the two babies, Madison’s was a difficult birth for her mother, Carla, and her shoulder dislocated as she was born.
She arrived breathless.
For 73 excruciating seconds. “They had to resuscitate her,” Carla said in a soft and somber tone. “I didn’t even know at first. I knew the nurse was beating on me to get her out. I was just happy she was out. I didn’t know anything.”
Eighteen years later, the magnitude of those 73 seconds isn’t lost on anyone in the family.
Not to Madison. Not to Michaela. Not to their parents, nor their three older siblings Noah, Jordan and Emma.
So with every point they score, every pass they make, every rebound they pull down — not to mention every moment of the lifelong journey they’re on — the Cloonan twins give thanks.
Because they know how close they were to not being “they.”
“It would have been so different,” Michaela said at the scary notion of losing her twin at birth. “I’m glad she came out of that all right.”
A blank look comes across Carla’s face when looking back at their birth. Twenty-three minutes after Michaela arrived in the world, Madison followed. But in between the girls, the placenta had detached, Carla said.
“We don’t know how long (Madison) was in there with the placenta detached,” Carla said. “They almost had to take her by C-section, but on the last push, she came out.”
Madison might have been lifeless for those 73 seconds when she first came out of her mother’s womb, but she — as well as her twin — have been anything but ever since. The youngest of five Cloonan children, Madison and Michaela have been inseparable ever since. How inseparable? They both have started every single varsity basketball game at Cornerstone since their freshman year. They each scored their 1,000th career point within a week of each other. And they both signed letters of intent to play college basketball at nearby Ursuline College.
Their hobbies are pretty much the same, too.
“We’re basically the same,” Madison said. “Food — everything.” Michaela chimed in. “One difference is chocolate. Madison likes it, and I really don’t.”
Another difference, albeit a slight one, is their style of play. While Michaela is more of a court facilitator — she averages 6.7 assists and 4.8 steals to go with her 11.7 points per game — Madison is more of a post presence in averaging 13.2 points and a team-leading 7.4 rebounds per game.
“They’ve always been good,” father Patrick said. “I still remember their first day playing at Upward. Someone said, ‘Your girls are so good. How long have they been playing?’ I’m like, ‘This is their first day.’”
The girls in unison pointed out they had a pretty good role model after whom to tailor their games. Their big sister Jordan. Jordan Cloonan helped lead Cornerstone to their first girls basketball state final four in 2016. A slick ballhandling guard, who could also flash her share of moves in the paint, Jordan Cloonan not only led the Patriots’ upstart program, but she also set a standard for her sisters.
As stellar as the twins have been on the court, Jordan’s 1,207 career points still remains a family best ahead of Madison’s 1,086 and Michaela’s 1,024.
“That was our highlight — going to Jordan’s games,” Michaela said. “She’s definitely been a big factor in our basketball careers. She’s always there for us.”
Added Madison of her big sister, “Her grit and determination and how hard she worked on the court. We picked up on that . ... Jordan definitely set a standard. She didn’t put any pressure on us, just showed us how to play hard and play right. The rest would come.”
The Cloonans’ dedication to the game, as well as that of their teammates, have led
the Cornerstone program to unprecedented heights. After losing in the Division IV regional semifinal round in 2017 and 2018, the Patriots advanced to the state final four for the second time in program history last year, where they lost to eventual state champion Minster, 65-31.
Cornerstone returns four starters from last year’s state team — the Cloonans, senior Kailey Tyna and junior Riley Stopp. Suffice to say, goals are high.
“We want to win it,” Madison said, Michaela nodding in affirmation.
It’s a season-long ride the entire team will enjoy, but maybe none more so than the Cloonan twins.
No matter the outcome this season, the Cloonan girls will enjoy the journey while giving thanks for it.
That’s because 18 years ago, there were 73 seconds where they were almost not “they,” but rather an unimaginable solo act.
“It’s scary to even think about,” Madison said. “I’m glad God allowed me to make it through that so I could share this amazing bond with my sister.”