Now that the great “sinkhole-delayed” game is in the books – Cedar Crest 27, McCaskey 22 in one of the wildest, wackiest endings you’ll ever see – here are my ‘3 Stars’ from Week 8 …

Kevin Kelley, Conestoga Valley – Running out of superlatives for the Buckskins’ senior I-back, who continues to put up eye-popping numbers against defenses that know he’s coming, and in some pretty crummy conditions. Last Friday in the slop against Lebanon, Kelley was up to his old tricks, piling up 335 yards on 34 carries and scoring four touchdowns in CV’s 35-14 victory over the Cedars. Kelley’s TD runs against Lebanon covered 72, 30, 1 and 60 yards, respectively, as he upped his L-L League-leading totals to 287 carries for 1,685 yards and 22 TD runs. It was the second time this season Kelley rushed for 300 or more yards; he gained 300 yards (on 41 carries) and scored four TD in CV’s 35-28 win over Elizabethtown on Oct. 2. Kelley is on pace to rush for 2,106 yards in 10 games. He would be the first L-L League RB to rush for more than 2,000 yards in 10 games since Lebanon Catholic’s Tommy Long in 1996. More importantly, Kelley and the Bucks need a win Friday at Cocalico to stay on Manheim Central’s heels in the Section 2 race. A loss and a Barons’ win (over Lebanon) would give Central the outright championship. By the way, this is Kelley’s fourth appearance in my ‘3 Stars’ this season.

Chad Frey, Lampeter-Strasburg – A tidy night for Frey last Friday in the rain against Pequea Valley, when the Pioneers’ senior RB carried 10 times for 144 yards and scored three TD in Lampeter-Strasburg’s 35-0 win over the Braves. It was the Pioneers’ second victory in a row via shutout – L-S beat Donegal 46-0 in Week 7 – and the Pioneers remained a game behind Lancaster Catholic in the Section 3 hunt. Frey’s TD runs against Pequea Valley covered 10, 7 and 26 yards, and he did all of his damage in the first half. After suffering through some nagging injuries earlier this season, Frey has emerged as the Pioneers’ leading rusher with 685 yards on 82 carries (a nifty 8.4 yards per pop) with six TD runs. He’s also caught 11 passes – second-most on the team – for 122 yards and two scores. And Frey is a special teams fiend. Add it all up and L-S is still in the Section 3 race, and at 5-3 overall, the Pioneers are thinking postseason.

David Kennedy, Elizabethtown – My first two initial thoughts here: First, I rarely pick defensive players for ‘3 Stars’, and perhaps I need to start doing that a little more often. Second, I rarely pick a player from a losing team for ‘3 Stars’, but in Kennedy’s case, I couldn’t resist. E-town had zero luck offensively in its 27-0 loss to Manheim Central in the pouring rain last Friday night in E-town. The Bears were limited to 66 yards and three first downs, and barely had the ball in Central territory all night. But Kennedy, from his LB spot, was a monster on D for E-town. The senior was in on 15 tackles – including a nifty nine solo stops – he sacked Central QB Justin Gorman, which is saying something, because he’s barely been sniffed when he’s sat in the pocket this season, and he forced a fumble. I was at this game; the PA guy was constantly calling Kennedy’s name. He was outstanding. Kennedy leads the Bears with 111 total tackles, including 61 solo stops and three sacks.