VISALIA - The West lost by a record margin in the 42nd annual Tulare-Kings County All Star game, but after it was all said and done, there was nothing but smiles on the faces of the losing players Saturday at Mineral King Bowl.

West players gave hugs and handshakes after, posing for team pictures in what was the last football game of most of their lives.

The East won 48-14 but in the small time given to prepare for the game, players on the West squad had as good as an experience as ever.

"All those guys are friends to me," said West quarterback Bryant Furtado of Hanford High, who will try and play at Southwestern College in the San Diego area. "It was challenging and fun.

"The game didn't end the way we wanted it to, but it was a great experience for me."

The team from the East, with players mostly from Tulare county, did the most of their damage behind a bigger offensive line.

"We knew they were going to come at us downhill," Furtado said.

Josh Ramos of Redwood accounted for four of the East's is teams five touchdowns, scoring three on rushes and one of a reception.

He finished with 180 yards rushing on 26 attempts and 77 yards receiving on three catches.

The East scored on its first possesion of the game and never looked back.

The East jumped to a 21-6 lead after the first quarter and went into halftime ahead 24-14 before scoring 28 unanswered in the second half.

The highlight of the night for the West came in the second quarter when McFarland's Steve Robinson made cuts and jukes on his way for a 58-yard touchdown that made the score 14-6. In the fourht quarter, he made a 35 yard rush with less than a minute left in the game.

Play got choppy in the third quarter.

Corcoran's Richard Sahagun was ejected in the third quarter for a late hit after a touchdown that essentially but the game out of reach for West.

The East would score twice more after that.

West coach Rich Lane of Corcoran enjoyed the time he had with the players he coached. Some of which were from his Panther squad that went 12-1 with a runner up finish in the Central Section Division V.

There were players from the Tulare area that could have played for the West but didn't for different reasons.

"I had so much fun with these guys," Lane said. "I'm really going to miss them. Even though the game wasn't as close as we would have liked, it wasn't a Friday night.

"It was on a Saturday and there is nothing wrong with playing on a Saturday."

(June 21, 2009)