Tucson native and Sunnyside High School alumna Audrey Jimenez is now a champion at the collegiate level.
Jimenez, a wrestler at Lehigh University in Pennsylvania, took home the NCAA women's wrestling championship title in the 110-pound weight class last Saturday in Coralville, Iowa.
The No. 1-ranked Jimenez pinned No. 2 Sage Mortimer of Grand Valley State in the first period of the match with less than 90 seconds left on the clock.
In addition to her championship win, Jimenez was awarded the tournament's “Outstanding Wrestler” award and the NCAA's “Most Dominant Wrestler” award for the 2025-26 season, according to Lehigh University.
“I’m so happy to be here,” she said in a press conference following the win. “I wanted to come into this tournament, just being present, filling up my eyes with everything going on around me. Filling up my heart with love and truly, truly, being where my feet are. I’ve been trying my best to separate myself from the results because, as a wrestler, I don’t want to be attached to that. I want to be attached to my journey and who I can become with wrestling (and) the people I can meet in wrestling. And of course, it’s really hard to do that and it takes constant practice, but I’m really more than the title.”
Lehigh's Audrey Jimenez is declared the winner, winning the 110-pound final during the championship round of the inaugural NCAA NC Women's Wrestling Championships at Xtream Arena in Coralville, Iowa, on Saturday, March 7, 2026.
In Lehigh’s inaugural women’s varsity wrestling season, Jimenez went 21-0 in the regular season and 23-0 overall.
“It’s the best thing ever,” she said after the championship. “Every time a thought comes up and I’m trying to imagine what it’s gonna be like, I’m like, ‘Man, I haven’t even gotten there yet.’ But I dream about those moments where I run to my coach, running to my team, running to my family and the fact that I got to do it is amazing.”
During her time back in Tucson, Jimenez was a four-time state champion at Sunnyside — three times in the girls division and once in the boys division.
After graduating, she went on to medal in multiple World and Pan-American championships, win two U.S. Open freestyles and compete in the Olympic Trials.
Now that the college season is over, Jimenez told reporters at the NCAA championship that she’s focused on “healing up” and making sure that she’s healthy in “mind, body, soul, spirit and overall.”
Lehigh's Audrey Jimenez, right, wrestles Iowa's Nyla Valencia at 110 pounds during the semifinal round of the inaugural NCAA women's wrestling championships in Coralville, Iowa, Saturday, March 7, 2026.
