Prairie View wrestler ends winning season short of a medal at state tournament

Prairie View wrestlers Whitley Cox-Haliburton and Dayton Kline were honored at pep rally Thursday as they prepared to head for state championship tournaments. (Roger Sims/Linn County Journal)

SALINA – Prairie View wrestler Whitley Cox-Haliburton fell short of her attempt to win a medal for the third year in a row at the Class 4A-1A Girls State Wresting Championships in Salina on Thursday.

After winning third place in the regional tournament in Coffeyville on Feb. 11 with three pins and a loss, Cox-Haliburton walked into the Tony’s Pizza Event Center in Salina with a 26-11 record for the season.

The junior was pinned in the first round by Baldwin wrestler Madi Hargett at 2 minutes 52 seconds into the round, pushing Cox-Halliburton into the consolation bracket.

In the second match, Cox-Halliburton came back to pin junior Emma Balleau of Norton Community in just 19 seconds. She won the third round in a unanimous 4-0 decision over Gracie Penrod of Hill City.

Her fourth match pitted her against Nakeitta Macias of Harper Chapparal. Macias pinned Cox-Haliburton at 2:39, ending Cox-Haliburton’s quest for a third medal at state.

“Whitley had a tough state tourney that didn’t end in her favor,” said coach Joe Cullor in an email following the tournament. “We learn more from our loses than our wins. As a staff we are excited to see how she rebounds from the disappointment.”