2024-25 Team USA ranking: No. 4 at 87 kg
2025-26 Team USA Ranking: No. 3 at 87 kg/191.8 pounds
Years on Team USA: 3 (2023-24, 2024-25, 2025-26)
Residence: Arnold, Md.
Regional Training Center: Illinois Regional Training Center
Club: Illini WC
High School: Belleville, Ill. (Althoff Catholic High School)
Born: July 15, 2000
Senior World Teams
2023 Senior Worlds (17th at 87 kg)
Age-Group World Teams
2019 U20 Worlds (10th at 82 kg)
Career Highlights
- 2023 Senior World Team member
- 2019 U20 World Team member
- 2019 U20 Pan American champion in freestyle
- Final X champion
Career Biography
2025: Gold medalist at Bill Farrell Memorial International … Placed third at U.S. Open
2024: Placed third at U.S. Olympic Team Trials
2023: Placed 17th at World Championships in Belgrade, Serbia … Placed fourth at Senior Nationals … Final X champion … Senior World Team Trials champion … Placed third at U.S. Open
2020: Placed third at Senior Nationals
2019: Placed 10th at U20 World Championships in Tallin, Estonia … Gold medalist at U20 Pan American Championships in Guatemala City, Guatemala in freestyle … U.S. Open champion in UWW Junior Greco-Roman … U.S. Open runner-up in UWW Junior freestyle … Placed fourth at Junior Freestyle World Team Trials
2018: UWW Junior World Team Trials runner-up … U.S. Open runner-up in UWW Junior
2017: Placed third at UWW Cadet Nationals
College: Four-time NCAA National Qualifier (2020, 2021, 2022, 2023) … Third at 2022 Big Ten Championships (184 pounds) … Fourth at 2023 Big Ten Championships (197 pounds) … Coached by Mike Poeta, Jeremy Hunter, Isaiah Martinez, Ed Ruth, Christian Kanzler and Bryan Medlin … Graduated with Bachelor of Science of Marketing in Business … Graduated with a Master’s degree in Strategic Brand Communication
High School: Graduate of Althoff Catholic High School in Belleville, Illinois … Two-time Illinois state champion (2017 and 2018) … Three-time All-State … Also played football in high school
USA Wrestling Age-Group: 2018 Junior Nationals champion, third in freestyle … 2018 Northern Plains Regional champion in Greco-Roman and freestyle … Placed third at 2017 Junior Nationals, fourth in freestyle … 2017 Central Regional champion in Greco-Roman and freestyle … 2016 Cliff Keen Preseason Nationals runner-up … Placed fifth at 2016 Cadet Freestyle Nationals … Finished third at 2015 Northern Plains Regionals in freestyle
Personal: Son of Elaine and Joe Braunagel … Has three brothers, Danny, Joe and Jarrid … Brothers Danny and Joe also wrestled at Illinois
Instagram: @Braunagel
X: @BraunagelZac