NEXT STOP: SALINA — Mustangs see triumph, heartbreak on mats

BURLINGTON — Iola Hig’s Bryce Misenhelter and John Whitworth have one advantage over most of the competition they’ll face starting Friday at the Class 4A State Wrestling Tournament.
They’ve already faced the best the state has to offer at their respective weight levels, at least according to the latest KWCA rankings.
Both qualified for state by placing in the top four over the two-day Class 4A regional at Burlington High School.
Misenhelter punched his ticket to state by winning twice on Friday, securing a berth in the regional championship match.
On Saturday, he faced off against Ottawa”s Dalton Weidl, the top-ranked 195-pound wrestler in Class 4A. Weidl controlled the match, although Misenhelter had a pair of opportunities to escape and get takedowns of his own.
“Thought I had him twice,” he said.
Instead, Weidl cruised to a 12-0 win and the regional crown.
Whitworth, wrestling at 160 pounds, qualified for state through the consolation bracket. He secured his state berth by pinning Osawatomie’s Andy Blanton 30 seconds into the second period of the consolation semifinals — the infamous “blood round” in which a win earns a trip to state and a loss leaves a wrestler empty-handed.
With his state berth in tow, Whitworth fell short in the third-place match, losing via pin to Baldwin’s Owen Tuckfield.
Both Whitworth and Misenhelter agreed the competition Saturday leaves them well equipped for Salina, site of the state tournament.
“I know experience is important,” said Whitworth, a senior completing his first full season on the wrestling team. “I’m not going to be as experienced as the other guys there, but I think I can stay aggressive and give it my all.”
Misenhelter qualified for state as a junior at 182 pounds.
He moved up a weight class early this season, despite not weighing 195 pounds.
“I’m at the upper 180s,” he noted.
What he gives up in size, however, he makes up for with speed.
“I think I can do better at this weight division,” Misenhelter said. “My goal since last year was to make it to state and medal once I get there.”

THE JUBILATION for Misenhelter and Whitworth was muted by the disappointment and heartbreak for Iola’s other wrestlers, most prominently Cody Conner.
Conner, a senior wrestling at 152 pounds, came up one match short of a state bid.
He was stunned with a second-period pin at the hands of Burlington’s Chris Ferguson.
Conner had dominated Ferguson in the first 30 seconds of their match about three weeks earlier.
“That’s why they call it the blood round,” IHS head coach Brad Carson said. “I still don’t know exactly what happened.”
Conner looked for a repeat when he earned a pair of back points early in his opening round against Ferguson. But his attempts to earn a quick pin went for naught, and Ferguson got the upper hand with a reversal later in the period.
Ferguson got the upper hand with a takedown just over the halfway point of the second period. The momentum of the maneuver put Conner on his back, where Ferguson pounced, earning a quick pin.
“I’m so disappointed for Cody,” Carson said. “This was his dream all season. To fall short this way was tough.”

ANDREW GARBER’S tournament also came to a sudden end at 182 pounds in a consolation match against Louisburg”s Brenton Wrigley. Neither could score a point in the first period before Wrigley earned a point for an early escape in the second. He took advantage of his top position to begin the third period, forcing Garber onto his back a few seconds into the period. He secured the pin about 30 seconds later.
“The one thing I was disappointed in as a team was that we didn’t do a better job on bottom,” Carson said.
Tavon Blazek and Colton Toney both won consolation matches early Saturday before falling short in their second competitions of the day. Blazek was tied 2-2 with Paola’s Chase Patton before Patton earned three near fall points at the conclusion of the third and final round.
Toney, meanwhile, was pinned by Baldwin’s Wyatt Parmley in the second period of their consolation match.
Seth Sanford’s competition came to a scary conclusion in his consolation match against Frontenac’s Kyle Loy.
The wrestlers fell into the wall at the start of the second period — Sanford went head first — where he lay motionless as doctors were summoned.
Sanford was wheeled from the gymnasium on a stretcher and taken to a local hospital for observation. He was diagnosed with a minor concussion and later returned to the stands to cheer on his teammates.

CARSON gave his wrestlers a mixed grade on the day.
“John did an excellent job by being aggressive and using his athleticism,” Carson said. “Bryce was tough, but I was disappointed we didn’t do better on bottom. This is the first time I’ve had a wrestler not make it to state when I expected him to.”
The state competition runs Friday and Saturday at Salina’s Bicentennial Center.
CLASS 4A REGIONAL TOURNAMENT
145 — Travis Rieske
(0-2; did not place)
Ethan Hess (Frontenac) def. Rieske, fall 2:31
Blake Lewis (Spring Hill) def. Rieske, fall 0:32
152 — Cody Conner
(3-2; did not place)
Conner def. Aubrey Hamiton, fall 1:20
Daniel Dees (Chanute) def. Conner, fall 3:39
Conner def. John Diediker (Osawatomie), fall :31
Conner def. Lincoln Smith (Spring Hill), fall 2:40
Chris Ferguson (Burlington) def. Conner, fall 2:17
160 — John Whitworth
(3-2; fourth place) *
Whitworth def. Anthony Morton (Parsons), fall 1:25
Whitworth def. Dillon Flora (Frontenac), fall :31
Taylor Watkins (Columbus) def. Whitworth, fall :59
Whitworth def. Andy Blanton (Osawatomie), fall 1:31
Owen Tuckfield (Baldwin) def. Whitworth, fall 1:43
170 — Tavon Blazek
(1-2; did not place)
Blazek def. Kevin Rivera (Parsons), fall 5:34
Alex Son (Chanute) def. Blazek, fall 1:36
Chase Patton (Paola) def. Blazek, 5-2
182 — Andrew Garber
(2-2; did not place)
Garber def. Garrett Gross (Ottawa), fall 4:00
Ethin VanAnne (Chanute) def. Garber, 11-2
Garber def. Austin Grate (Spring Hill), fall 4:34
Brenton Wrigley (Louisburg) def. Garber, fall 3:32
195 – Bryce Misenhelter (35-3)
(2-1; second place) *
Misenhelter def. Dunkan Watrous (Paola), 11-0
Misenhelter def. Dylan Thompson (Spring Hill), fall 2:49
Dalton Weidl (Ottawa) def. Misenhelter, 12-0
220 – Seth Sanford
(0-2; did not place)
Keenan Dodd (Parsons) def. Sanford, fall 2:22
Kyle Loy (Frontenac) def. Sanford, injury default, 1:06
285 – Colton Toney
(1-2; did not place)
Kainon Clark (Spring Hill) def. Toney, fall :31
Toney def. Chandler Adamson (Ottawa), fall 2:51
Wyatt Parmley (Baldwin) def. Toney, fall 1:49
* DENOTES STATE QUALIFIER