Runner-up finishes at state motivate Pine Creek wrestler

Josh Martinez is motivated by a state title that has eluded him two straight years in two different states.

The Pine Creek wrestler is driven — not devastated — by the pair of runner-up finishes. He sees value in losses even though he hates the thought of losing.

“I think it builds character,” he said. “I see guys come off the mat mad after losing a match, but I’m not that way. You can learn from losing if you want to.”

Martinez, a junior who wrestles at 112 pounds, believes he has learned from his losses and is eager to put that belief to the test.

“I want to be a state champion,” said Martinez, who is ranked No. 2 by Tim Yount’s On the Mat. “I’ve got two chances left, and I’d like to leave Pine Creek as a two-time state champion.”

Those are high aspirations for a wrestler who didn’t step on a mat until middle school, where he took his fair share of lumps at first. But soon the victories began to outnumber the defeats.

As a freshman in Washington state, he made it to the final before losing. A year later, after moving to Colorado, he again wrestled for the title. But he lost that 103-pound match to Matthew Gurule of Grand Junction Central.

Pine Creek coach Billy Gabel, who calls Martinez the “hardest working kid in the room,” expects a different outcome this time.

“If he wrestles to his potential, there’s not a guy in the state who can beat him,” Gabel said.

The road to state for Martinez likely will go through an old nemesis in Gurule, a senior ranked No. 1 by On the Mat. The wrestlers split their two previous meetings this season.

“I know we’re both gunning for a state title,” Martinez said. “He wants to go out on top, and I’m hungry for my first state championship.”

Martinez and his teammates will begin the march toward that goal this weekend at regionals. The state tournament is Feb. 19-20 at Pepsi Center in Denver.

The Eagles are one of the top 5A programs in the state but are looking for their first championship. An individual win by Martinez could play a key role in that pursuit.