ST. LOUIS, Missouri – James Martinez claimed Colorado Mesa's first-ever NCAA National Championship in any sport after defeating Anderson University's Sean Turner 8-7 in the final of the 157 pound weight class at the NCAA National Wrestling Championships.



Martinez trailed all match long. He fell behind after an awkward scramble on the edge of the match and a takedown was awarded to Turner and an immediate escape as both wrestlers went out of bounds.
 
After surviving the initial onslaught of Turner, Martinez went on the offensive.
 
Martinez was deep on a shot with around 40 seconds left but couldn't score the points and a stalemate was called by the official.
 
James once again was deep on a shot and scored a takedown with less than two seconds remaining in the match to earn the 8-7 win.


 
Earlier in the day, Martinez may have pulled off the single biggest upset in the tournament when he defeated Clint Poster of St. Cloud State in his semifinal. Poster entered the match 36-0 on the season and ranked No. 1 in the nation.
 
Martinez finishes his year 39-3 and has now collected over 110 wins in his career with three All-American trophies.
 
Jordan Passehl and Randy Boerner each finished in eighth place and collected their first All-American award.
 
The Mavericks finished in 10^th place in the team standings with 34 points. It is the highest ever finish for Colorado Mesa at the National Championships.