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ROB VARELA/THE STAR The Westlake High boys varsity cross country team, led by Chris Costa (front row from left), Mikey Giguere and Sean O’Bryan, will once again be one of the top teams in the county.

Westlake’s boys are the defending state champions and are ranked second in CIF-SS Division 2.

The Warriors have nearly all their key elements returning in 2013; the only runner lost to graduation is Rocky Peterson, who was Westlake’s top finisher at the state meet.

The other four scorers return: seniors Mikey Giguere, Chris Costa and Sean O’Bryan and junior Graham Rigby. Junior Ryan Finch was Westlake’s sixth man at state and figures to close the gap this season after winning the Ventura County track championship in the 400 meters.

“Last year was obviously a really fantastic year and even now, it’s still kind of hard to process,” coach Joe Snyder said.

“Typically, we like to run a real low-key program, try to stay under the radar and progress through the season. We’re always trying to do like everybody else does and run your best at the end. We have that same goal in mind, but it’s tough because I think there are kids that are going to have a little bit of a bull’s-eye on their back. People are really going to be going after them and be motivated to get them.”

Westlake is No. 7 in the all-division state rankings, but two other Marmonte teams are in the top 15 — No. 12 Newbury Park and No. 14 Simi Valley. Newbury Park is No. 7 in CIF-SS Division 1 and Simi is No. 4 in CIF-SS Division 2. Moorpark cracks those rankings at No. 10.