DENVER -- Matilda Hruby prevented history and set some up at the same time.

In the much-anticipated last match of the Class 5A girls state wrestling tournament Saturday night — with the Ball Arena stands atypically packed for the finale — the Brighton junior denied Pomona’s Timberly Martinez the distinction of being a four-time state champion, while keeping alive her own hopes of doing the same.

Hruby took control early and held off Martinez for a 9-3 victory in the 155-pound final that brought an epic conclusion to a memorable state tournament that had the crowd on the edge of its seats until the final whistle.

“Obviously walking into that match, someone’s dream was coming true and someone’s wasn’t,” Hruby said. “I was lucky enough to pull off that win and hopefully next year, I can get my fourth.”

Martinez had won three championships in three different weight classes — 130 in 2023, 135 in 2024 and 140 in 2025 — and she worked to the cusp of adding a fourth when she advanced to the 155 championship match with wins by fall in her first three matches of the three-day tournament. One more win would have put her in a small class of four-time state champions in girls wrestling history, a list that includes Calhan’s Ciara Monger and Pomona’s Persaeus Gomez.

But in the championship match, she ran into Hruby — winner of the 155-pound title last season in addition to the 170-pound crown from her freshman season — who was also working on an undefeated season.

After a long wait to get on the mat, Hruby shot first and got the takedown that didn’t seal the result, but she knew it put her in a great position.

“I knew that if I got the first takedown, I was most likely to win, and that was what I focused on getting,” she said.

The lead grew to 5-0 after a reversal in the second period and though Martinez got a takedown in the third to cut into the lead, Hruby never wavered and scored again to seal the victory.

“I walked in knowing that match was going to go into the third period unless someone got caught, so I put in the extra work,” Hruby said. “I ran every morning at 5:30, I practiced and then I asked coaches to come work with me other times. …This is what I love to do and so I will be training the same way for next year, or even harder.”

Also joining the three-time state championship club on the night was Pomona’s Justice Gutierrez, who claimed the 100-pound crown with a 10-0 major decision win over Sand Creek’s Peggy Dean in a matchup of two wrestlers that came into the match without a defeat on the season.

In the end, it was Martinez who came out unblemished with her 43rd victory in as many matches.

“It feels amazing, I’m really excited,” she said. “I know I proved a lot of people wrong, which is nice, and I did it all for the glory of God. … All my championships are different, but this one was really special because i knew there was a lot of talk about this match and also my partner (Timmerly Condit) won at 105 right after me, so taking them back-to-back was great.”

Perfection became a theme, as Prairie View’s Jaydin Cuevas capped a 47-0 season with a win by fall at 115 pounds and Vista PEAK Prep senior Amelia Bacon matched that same record after a 7-3 victory that gave her a repeat as 120-pound champion. Chatfield senior Ryen Hickey — who won all four of her matches by fall and spent no more than 1 minutes, 6 seconds, on the mat in any of them, including a 25-second pin in the final — finished 29–0, Central of Grand Junction’s Shylee Tuzon capped a 40-0 senior season with a second-period pin and Broomfield senior Shayla Martinez also went 40-0 with a win by fall at 190 pounds.

A pair of freshmen got into the championship act in Pomona’s Condit and Falcon’s Allison McDaniel, who defeated 2025 state champion Saydee Lussenhop in the 110-pound final to cap a 41-1 season.

Regis Jesuit junior Remington Zimmerer became a two-time state champion as she won the 120 pound bracket for a second straight season, while Castle View’s Zaret Silva Lopez and Columbine’s McKenna Heston (who finished 49-1) also took second championships. First-time winners among non-freshmen were senior Lizzie Padilla at 140 pounds and Vista PEAK Prep junior Khloe Yizar at 235 pounds.

In the team chase, Central of Grand Junction — which includes four schools in Grand Junction and one from Rangely — repeated as the 5A winner with 149 points, boosted by seven top-six placers. Pomona scored 124 points to finish second and Chatfield claimed third with 111.

“This is just incredible,” said Center of Grand Junction coach Chad Dare, who was unexpectedly hoisted into the air by his team with the championship trophy. “We went right back to work after we got home last year and we said it’s over, it’s in the past. We knew we couldn’t dwell on that and we had to continue to move forward. We had to have a short memory and come back stronger because of the target we had on our back.”