Cook Passes for 2 Scores to Lead East to 12-7 Win

Wayne Cook of Newbury Park High passed for 190 yards and two touchdowns to lead the East to a 12-7 victory over the West in the 16th Ventura County All-Star game Saturday night at Hueneme High.

Cook, who has signed a letter of intent to play football at UCLA this fall, completed 10 of 17 passes despite playing only a little more than two quarters. Cook was named the game’s most valuable player.

The West made a late surge but the East held on when Jeff Moore of Thousand Oaks recovered a fumble at the 17-yard-line with 24 seconds to play.

The East took a 6-0 lead as Cook capped a 10-play, 98-yard drive with a 24-yard touchdown pass to Royal’s Pat Ledesma with 4:47 to play in the first quarter. Ledesma, a quarterback last season who played wide receiver in the all-star game, was left uncovered and waited patiently for about 10 seconds before a scrambling Cook located him.

The East added a touchdown in the second quarter on what could easily have been a turnover.

Cook was pressured out of the pocket and, scrambling, lofted a pass high downfield in the vicinity of four West defenders. But it was Royal wide receiver James Jones who reached up behind the defenders to grab the ball and take a couple of easy steps into the end zone with a 60-yard touchdown reception.

“We had nothing to lose, so I threw it as far as I could and he made a great catch,” Cook said.

Westlake tailback Keith Burke helped keep defensive pressure off Cook by rushing for 96 yards in 18 carries with a stellar performance at tailback.

“The offensive line really opened up the holes for me tonight and it was a really great experience,” Burke said.

The touted offensive potential of the West never got in gear and the team’s only score came on a trick play.

Hueneme’s Carlos Cardenas took a handoff on a fake punt and scrambled 45 yards for a touchdown in the third quarter.