By Ricardo Arguello, Appleton Post-Crescent

There’s a confidence that permeates throughout the Appleton East boys’ golf team.

And why not? The Patriots roster is made up of players so close to each other in ability that it’s hard to point to one player who is head and shoulders above anyone else.

That consistency has the Patriots feeling good about themselves as they prepare for the WIAA Division 1 state boys’ golf championship at University Ridge Golf Course in Verona today and Tuesday.

It is the second consecutive trip to University Ridge for East, which finished ninth out of 16 teams last season.

“If you look at our conference record, we were 9-0 and we played strong from the start,” East coach Kevin Reichardt said. “We’ve been solid all year long. It’s just a matter now of getting four guys playing their top-notch game in a two-day period.”

Mario Russo, Erik Mayer, John Anderson, Aaron Navratil and Mike Muoio are listed as the top five golfers for the Patriots, but Reichardt said that any of the players could lead the team on any given day.

“At any invitational or tournament, we feel that we have the makeup to be real competitive and ultimately win,” Reichardt said. “It sounds a little strong to say that we’re going to (state) expecting to win. We know there are great teams and competitors there. But we have five golfers who have a shot to go low and put up good scores in a two-day period.”

One of those golfers is Anderson, a sophomore. He shot a two-day total of 158 at last year’s state meet and worked diligently last summer to improve his short game.

“I worked hard to improve that with (personal coach) Carolyn Barnett-Howe,” Anderson said. “She’s really helped me with my mental game and helped me direct my swing. It’s helped me become a better golfer.”

Anderson, Russo, Mayer and Navratil all competed at University Ridge last season. While the team hasn’t had a chance to play at the course at any other time, that one experience should prove to be beneficial this time around, Reichardt and Anderson said.

“It’s an extremely difficult course and I think last year’s experience should help out,” Reichardt said. “We shot 313 on the first day as a team and 317 on the second (630 total). I thought those were great numbers and it shows you how competitive it is down there when we shoot like that and finish ninth. You really have to be lights out to be in the running.”

Said Anderson: “We have to have a real team effort and everybody has to show up both days and really have to play well both days. There’s a lot of good teams down there.”