Sunnyside graduate Audrey Jimenez, in her freshman year at Lehigh University, earned a spot on the U.S. U20 Women’s Freestyle World Team, winning the 50 Kg competition of the 2025 U.S. Marine Corps Women’s National Championships at Spokane, Wash., on Sunday.
She was also selected the Most Outstanding Wrestler of the event.
Jimenez advanced from the quarterfinal and semifinal rounds Saturday before winning the best-of-three championship series against Heather Crull of Fountain City, Ind., on Sunday.
She will be part of the U.S. team that will compete in the U20 World Championships at Sofia, Bulgaria, from Aug. 18-24.
Don’t let Audrey Jimenez wrap your legs
She won a stacked U20 World Team Trials bracket in grand fashion#WomensNationals25 pic.twitter.com/jaI1SQkc4T
— USA Wrestling (@USAWrestling) April 6, 2025
Crull is a senior in high school who won the U23 Women’s Freestyle World Team 50 Kg competition earlier in the weekend at Spokane. Jimenez did not take part in that competition.
Jimenez won both of her matches against Crull on Sunday by technical fall with a 10-0 score in each. One match was won in 1:15 and the other in 49 seconds.
Jimenez, the Class of 2024 Sunnyside standout who earned four state titles, including against boys competition as a senior, wrestled for the first time in an event this school year after undergoing surgery on her knee to repair a torn meniscus last summer.
“This past year, recovering from an injury, surgery and everything, it’s been a tough year just going through a lot,” Jimenez told USA Wrestling. “But I couldn’t be more grateful. It was much needed, just growth off the mat. I think coming into this tournament, I had a new perspective of how I wanted to compete and how I want to step on to the mat.
“The senior national team has been emphasizing you’re wrestling for your values, not for your results. That’s really helping me out. I knew going into the match Crull was a real tough competitor, but I just wanted to go out there, do whatever I feel, and thankfully, things worked out.”
Your 2025 U20 Women’s Freestyle World Team is set!
Meet your champs:
50 kg – Audrey Jimenez (PA)
53 kg – Abbi Cooper (CA)
55 kg – Everest Leydecker (AZ)
57 kg – Lorianna Piestewa (NM)
59 kg – Aubre Krazer (PA)
62 kg – Haylie Jaffe (PA)
65 kg – Daniella Nugent (MA)
68 kg –… pic.twitter.com/yW9B98EmMO— USA Wrestling (@USAWrestling) April 6, 2025
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ALLSPORTSTUCSON.com publisher, writer and editor Javier Morales is a former Arizona Press Club award winner. He is a former Arizona Daily Star beat reporter for the Arizona basketball team, including when the Wildcats won the 1996-97 NCAA title. He has also written articles for CollegeAD.com, Bleacher Report, Lindy’s Sports, TucsonCitizen.com, The Arizona Republic, Sporting News and Baseball America, among many other publications. He has also authored the book “The Highest Form of Living”, which is available at Amazon. He became an educator in 2016 and is presently a special education teacher at Sunnyside High School in the Sunnyside Unified School District.
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