Pomona’s Justice Gutierrez and Timberly Martinez pinning for more gold in Class 5A girls tournament
"I got a double leg and took her down," said Gutierrez, a 100-pounder. "Then I ran a wing-and-a-half and stuck her on her back."
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It took Justice Gutierrez a mere 50 seconds to stick Grand Junction Central’s Marissa Martinez Quezada in the Class 5A state wrestling semifinals Friday night.
Allow the Pomona super sophomore to explain.
“I got a double leg and took her down,” said Gutierrez, a 100-pounder. “Then I ran a wing-and-a-half and stuck her on her back.”
For those who don’t understand wrestling lingo, know this: Gutierrez is ultra-aggressive.
“If I didn’t wrestler, I’d have anger issues,” she said with a giggle. “But seriously, when I get on the mat, I flip a switch.”
So does her teammate and close friend, junior Timberly Martinez. She pinned Grand Junction Central’s Clara Denton-Baleztena in the second period in the 140-pound semifinals.
“We’re friendly with everybody, but when we get on the mat, we get really aggressive, even with our friends,” Martinez said.
Pomona, last year’s Class 5A champion, will not repeat as team champions this year. But Martinez and Gutierrez are integral to the Panther girls’ 24-karat wrestling tradition.
Martinez won gold as a freshman and a sophomore, and if she beats Discovery Canyon’s Sophia Flores in the finals on Saturday night, she’ll be three-quarters of the way to becoming a four-time champion. Gutierrez won as a freshman last year, and if she beats Widefield’s Vivienne Arellano she’ll be halfway to her goal.
“This is something very special,” Martinez said. “We’re part of a legacy.”
Martinez’s practice partner last year was Persaeus Gomez, who became the first female wrestler in Colorado to become a four-time state champion.
“Just being with Persaeus last year, and seeing her win four, it means a lot to use to have a chance to be four-timers,” Martinez said.
Both Gutierrez and Martinez started wrestling when they were 4 years old.
Matthew Gutierrez, Justice’s father, who was an assistant at Pomona last year before taking over as head coach, is not surprised by his daughter’s success.
“She’s always loved it and she’s always worked hard,” he said. “She started wrestling against the boys and her older brother, Elijha, when she was just a little girl.”
Gutierrez is ranked No. 11 nationally in her weight class. Martinez is also nationally ranked.
“It’s hard to describe what wrestling has meant to us,” Martinez said. “Now we both have a chance to win tomorrow night.”
For the record, Martinez got her unique first name in a unique way.
“My mom and dad were trying to think of a name,” she explained. “My mom would like one name, but me dad didn’t like it. Or my dad would like a name but my mom wouldn’t.”
“So they were at Home Depot one time and the checkout lady was named “Timberly.’ They both liked it, so here I am.”
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