Longtime Maize best friends eye unbeaten titles at Kansas high school state wrestling
Ever since second-grade recess, Ayden Flores and Ronan Wunsch have been best friends.
Long before they would become two of the best high school wrestlers in Kansas, Flores and Wunsch bonded over blacktop football, constant jokes and random games.
The pair of Maize seniors enter this week’s state wrestling championship as two of the most-feared wrestlers, both undefeated and ranked No. 1 in all classes in their respective weight classes, but Flores and Wunsch are still kids at heart.
“Sometimes we’ll have to separate them in practice because they’re always messing with each other,” Maize coach Brandon Ball said. “They try to give each other wet willies or act like something is on the other person’s shirt and drag their finger up their nose.”
In the midst of their final year, Flores and Wunsch like to keep the mood light in the practice room at times to deal with their own set of pressure. Flores, a defending state champion, has wrestled every match with a target on his back, while Wunsch, who has lost in the state semifinals the last two years, is desperate to climb to the top of the podium.
It’s no joking matter when it’s time to perform on the mat, as Flores is 43-0 at 190 pounds and Wunsch is 44-0 at 215 pounds. They both pinned all four opponents this past weekend to claim gold medals in their respective weight divisions at the Class 6A West regional.
The drive to both finish their senior years undefeated with state championships is what has motivated them all season. Now they are two days away from turning their dream into reality.
“We know each other so well, we know how to push each other,” Flores said. “We’re both super competitive, so when we’re going against each other, it’s like we’re our biggest rivals. That pushes us to get better every day. We’ve talked about going undefeated and winning state since the start of the season, so it would be really special to get to do that with my best friend.”
Both have years of experience wrestling at national tournaments at the junior level, so they are advanced when it comes to the art and technique of wrestling. They are experts at executing their game plan, forcing their opponent to adapt and finding solutions when things don’t go perfectly according to plan in a match.
Both are undersized for their weight divisions — Flores said he is 10 pounds under the 190 limit and Wunsch is around 20 pounds under the 215 limit — but ruthlessly apply pressure to opponents in their own way.
“Ever since he was a freshman, Ayden has had this ability to never get out of position,” said Ball, who was a four-time state champion himself at Hoisington from 2012-15. “He is always in good position and never gets caught on his back. He’s just extremely strong for his size. It’s almost impossible to take him down because his strength is insane.”
“You don’t see too many wrestle like Ronan,” Flores said. “He’s funky and unique and just really good at scrambling. When he gets on top, his top pressure is so good and he has great technique and knows how to get someone in a bad position and then capitalize on it.”
Flores and Wunsch played critical roles last year in helping Maize win its first team state championship in school history. The Eagles enter state ranked No. 3 in Class 6A and have a host of other state-ranked wrestlers, including another top-ranked wrestler in senior Jayden Ford at 175 pounds.
Other state qualifiers include sophomore Reese DeMoss (106), junior Michael Tran (113), freshman Tucker Verbeck (126), freshman Vincent Rosas (132), senior Daniel Gomez (138), junior Braden Salsbury (150), freshman Everett Joyce (165) and senior Jesse Villanueva (285). The state tournament begins on Thursday and concludes with championship matches on Saturday.
There’s plenty of motivation for Flores and Wunsch this week, not only to try to help the team repeat as champions, but also to go out on top with gold medals draped around their necks at Hartman Arena like they’ve envisioned for so long.
“We’ve been wrestling in big tournaments like this our whole lives, so you’ve just got to take it one match at a time,” Flores said. “Winning state last year doesn’t matter anymore. Being undefeated doesn’t matter anymore. Everyone is 0-0 now, so you’ve got to treat every match like it’s the state championship.”
Wichita-area Kansas state wrestling qualifiers
Andale (4A): Tristen Cox, so., 120; Ethan Eck, so., 150; Owen Eck, sr., 157; Cody Engelbrecht, sr., 165; Ian Aouad, sr., 175; Isaiah Wilson, jr., 190.
Andover (5A): John Martinez-Goodman, fr., 106; Coulter Rieschick, sr., 126; Luke Potter, jr., 132; Adam Maki, sr., 138; Bradley Trimmell, sr., 157; Tristan Ring, jr., 165; Logan Warkentine, jr., 175; Tate Hutchinson, jr., 190; Tristen Winfield, jr., 215.
Andover Central (5A): Ethan Worthington, fr., 106; Dawson Rodd, jr., 285.
Arkansas City (5A): Alex Giles, sr., 106; Kolby Quint, so., 113; Carlos Leyva, jr., 120; Cameron Bruce, jr., 132; Spencer Mosier, jr., 138; Brecken Graham, so., 150; Bryan Wilson, jr., 165; Trevor Johnson, sr., 285.
Augusta (4A): Brayden Luinstra, fr., 106; Jessy Gimple, sr., 113; Elijah Foy, sr., 120; Blayke Locke, sr., 132; Gunner Carey, so., 175; Devin Carroll, jr., 215; Willy Jon Morales, jr., 285.
Bishop Carroll (5A): Jackson Hermann, fr., 113; Connor Landers, fr., 120; Caden Denton, jr., 126; Owen Newell, so., 132; Campbell Denton, so., 138; Brady Duling, jr., 150; Elijah Means, jr., 157; Luke Arredondo, jr., 165; Turner Gilman, so., 175; P.J. Truman, sr., 190.
Bluestem (3-1A): Dagan Turner, sr., 113; Axton Vice, fr., 120; Laythan Vice, jr., 126; Ian Frazier, so., 132; Kaden Keil, so., 165; Aydin Haworth, fr., 175; Colten Neal, jr., 190; Noah Couey, so., 285.
Buhler (4A): Sammy Hershberger, so., 126; Cruz Hershberger, jr., 144; Dawsyn Valdois, sr., 165.
Burden-Central (3-1A): Anakin Brown, sr., 132; Kaden Miller, sr., 157; Miles Easley, sr., 175; Xander Woods, sr., 215.
Campus (6A): Trent Willis, jr., 113; Julio Sanchez, sr., 120; Trace VanAsdale, fr., 126.
Canton-Galva (3-1A): Jaxon Chrislip, fr., 132.
Chaparral (4A): Keaton Bollman, jr., 132; Josef Planansky, sr., 157.
Cheney (4A): Cayle Mruk, so., 106; Parker McClellan, jr., 144.
Circle (4A): Jax Cornejo, fr., 113.
Clearwater (4A): Dylan Hanna, jr., 138; Cooper Woodruff, jr., 285.
Derby (6A): Jayden Grijalva, jr., 106; Tanner Heincker, jr., 113; Liam Coultis, jr., 132; Diego Gauna, sr., 144; Zach Thomas, jr., 150; Aaden Hope, sr., 157; Xavier Hurtt, sr., 175; Peyton Neptune, sr., 190; Mason Hopper, sr., 215; Milan Colvin, jr., 285.
Douglass (3-1A): Carter Green, fr., 190.
Eisenhower (5A): Osten Kaehn, so., 113; Braedyn Blasi, sr., 144; Lucas Freeman, jr., 215.
El Dorado (4A): Gunner Owens, sr., 175.
Eureka (3-1A): Mason Hughes, fr., 106.
Garden Plain (3-1A): Ezri Kidd, jr., 120; Gage Lee, sr., 175.
Goddard (5A): Oscar Gauna, fr., 106; Gavin Lamkin, sr., 113; Harrison Glover, so., 120; Kolton McElwain, so., 126; Nick Miller, so., 132; Dawson Fisher, so., 144; Jacob Goodwin, jr., 150; Eastyn Vieyra, jr., 157; David Sample, jr., 165; Zachary Wessley, sr., 175; Preston Hagel, jr., 190.
Halstead (4A): Clayton Considine, jr., 126; Connor Herman, jr., 285.
Haven (3-1A): Tanner Loughrie, so., 120; Jacob Moore, jr., 126; Dustin Loughrie, sr., 144; Ty Lastinger, sr., 150.
Hillsboro (3-1A): Anthony Fickes, sr., 120; Aaron Hein, so., 144.
Hutchinson (5A): Cruz Cannon, fr., 106; Jair Maciel, so., 120; Max Harris, fr., 144; Jackson Anderson, so., 150; Kade Smith, jr., 157; Skylar Ray, jr., 190; Camden Jensen, sr., 285.
Kapaun Mt. Carmel (5A): Eli Koster, fr., 138; Ramiz Monaco, jr., 144; Adrian Monaco, fr., 150; Giulio Traglia, jr., 175; Omari Elias, sr., 190
Kingman (3-1A): Kade Osborn, jr., 144; Collin Schreiner, jr., 175.
Lyons (3-1A): Easton Benavidez, so., 106; A.J. Almanza, so., 113; Jace Grizzle, fr., 120; Isaac Fall, jr., 132; Nate Dold, jr., 157; Elijah Martinez, sr., 215.
Maize South (5A): Gavin Munoz, so., 113; Maxwell Kerr, fr., 132; Joshua Kerr, fr., 138; Joshua Berlin, sr., 157.
Marion (3-1A): Gavin Regier, sr., 150; Brian Nguyen, jr., 215.
McPherson (4A): John Robben, jr., 106; Hayden Farley, sr., 157; Landon Thompson, sr., 165; Jase Fitzmorris, jr., 175; Brock Richardson, jr., 190; Carter Spotted-Elk, sr., 285.
Mulvane (4A): Koehn Dietrich, jr., 113; Noah West, sr., 190; Austin Vanderhoof, sr., 215.
Newton (5A): Noah Vela, so., 106; Lucas Kaufman, jr., 120; Nate Barron, jr., 138; Bailey Steinmetz, sr., 144; Keon Edwards, sr., 165; Marcel Gonzalez, sr., 215; Logan Buchanan, sr., 285.
Nickerson (4A): Kristopher Monroe, so., 150.
Pratt (4A): Alex Chavez, fr., 106; Brandon Western, jr., 138; Trace Mehlhorn, sr., 144; Blake Winsor, jr., 150; Wyatt Lovell, jr., 157; Taye Wilson, jr., 165.
Remington (3-1A): Andrew Peters, sr., 126.
Rose Hill (4A): Samson Whitted, jr., 106; Trenton Richwine, jr., 113; Sebastian Bentley, so., 120; Adam Bilby, jr., 126; Johnny Leck, jr., 132; Damon Ingram, jr., 138; Tyren Emberson, jr., 157; Rhett Briggs, sr., 165; Leven Jones, jr., 175; Cole Rogers, jr., 215.
Valley Center (5A): Braxton Moody, jr., 113; Aiden Shields, jr., 120; Jett Schwartz, sr., 126; Cooper Boone, so., 144; Derek Truman, sr., 165; Gavin Saner, so., 175; Steel Schomaker, jr., 190; Dai’Mont Mucker, sr., 215.
Wellington (4A): Talan Cantrell, sr., 120; Cayson Ramirez, so., 190; Jamar Armstrong, jr., 215; Derrick Lowe, sr., 285.
West Elk (3-1A): Evan Coble, sr., 132; Creyo Koop, jr., 165; Edward Metcalf, so., 285.
Wichita East (6A): Tasi Brown, sr., 132; Joseph Profit, so., 144; S’ron Hill, sr., 190; Xavier Woodroof, so., 285.
Wichita Heights (6A): Jimmy Wall, sr., 120; Covell Nichols, fr., 126; Jonovan Wyatt, so., 144; Chase Plank, jr., 150; Kieron Harrison-Jones, sr., 190.
Wichita North (6A): Thomas Shields, so., 113; Noe Alvarado, so., 175.
Wichita Northwest (6A): Xzavien Murphy, jr., 113; Phillip Bowers, fr., 138.
Wichita Southeast (6A): Damarie Martin, jr., 106; Jamal Garrett, sr., 113; Lincoln Orangi, so., 138; Caphers Orangi, so., 157.
Wichita West (6A): Jacob Canaday, jr., 120; Guage Evans, jr., 132; Jacob Bible, sr., 165; Mencali En, jr., 190; Chance Johnson, jr., 215; James Moore, jr., 285.
Winfield (4A): Talon Suttles, jr., 126; Owen Suttles, jr., 132; Quaid Gilliland, fr., 138; Zane Swinford, jr., 144; Brody Lindenman, sr., 150; Mack Morin, jr., 190.
