ROSSBURG, Ohio — Mason Zeigler endured a few tense moments in wrestling the lead from Tim McCreadie. And a few more in holding off Jimmy Mars.

The 24-year-old driver from Chalk Hill, Pa., indeed survived a few scrapes but held on Friday for a thrilling victory at Eldora Speedway, earning $10,000 in the last of four preliminary features during the Dream XXIII presented by Ferris Mowers weekend.

“To come here and win this race, even though it’s not the Dream, it’s a preliminary night, everyone’s here and it’s a huge accomplishment for us,” Zeigler said on the victory stage at the historic Eldora oval. “We’re just super excited.”

A late charge by Mars, of Menomonie, Wis., fell three-tenths of a second short while McCreadie, of Watertown, N.Y., settled for third after leading the first 14 laps. Chris Simpson of Oxford, Iowa, and Brandon Sheppard of New Berlin, Ill., rounded out the top five in the 25-lapper.

Zeigler has been close to Eldora glory before on a major-race weekend, challenging for the lead in the second half of 2014's World 100 before spinning while battling for the lead. He admitted he "threw it away just driving over my head.”

This time, Zeigler was able to keep his wits about him despite a few close calls.

“I about did the same thing,” he said. “I knocked the right-front toe out. Jimmy was coming there at the end and I was just hanging on. We’re just thrilled to be here.”

Zeigler tracked down McCreadie amid traffic just past the halfway point, and still found himself battling slower cars with Mars and McCreadie still in contention in the final laps.

“(The slower drivers) don’t know you’re back there, so I was just trying to stay cool and not trying to slide them and open the door for Jimmy,” said Zeigler, who scored an Eldora victory last October in Sunoco American Late Model Series action. “They didn’t know I was there. They were racing two-wide and I really couldn’t do anything with them. There that last lap, I think I would have been able to split them coming in and I would have been able to walk away again. It was getting close there.”

Mars, whose runner-up finish followed a third-place finish in Friday’s prelim, didn’t quite have enough time to overtake Zeigler.

“The car started feeling pretty good there,” said Mars, the 1997 Dream winner. “At the beginning, I don’t know if that was water a little bit up top … I didn’t feel real good at the beginning. Toward the end the car got real balanced and felt real good. You always want another lap, but I guess we’ll take a second.

“It feels pretty good. It’s kind of weird. You can get a good set of tires sometimes or a bad set that maybe don’t come in right away. It kind of throws things for a little bit of a loop you’re really unsure. I just didn’t take off very good on the start. We’ll take that and move on to tomorrow night.”

McCreadie, who finished fifth in a Thursday prelim after running second late in the race, was third after leading the first 14 laps.

“We were a good bit better last night,” McCreadie said. “We need to be a little better. I was married to that little brown streak up there and once it got where you couldn’t leave off two up there I was kind of a sitting duck. I think we can be a little bit better tomorrow, which is hopefully good.”

The feature ran caution-free with 18 of 24 starters finishing on the lead lap.

Preliminary results and notes:

Consolation

Jacob Hawkins launched from outside the front row to grab a lead he'd never give up. He built his margin to five seconds by halfway to transfer to the main event along with Shanon Buckingham, sixth-starting Eddie Carrier Jr. and Brian Shirley. The race ran caution-free.

Finish (top four transfer): Jacob Hawkins, Shanon Buckingham, Eddie Carrier Jr., Brian Shirley, Jon Henry, Kody Evans, Andrew Reaume, Rod Conley, Nick Hoffman, Brian Harris, Joey Moriarty, Forrest Trent, Tyler Bruening, Jeff Babcock, Ryan King, Kenny Collins, Brett Miller, Jeff Beyers, Brian Ligon.

Heat notes

Brandon Sheppard made a quick turn in his Dream fortunes with his convincing Heat 1 victory. “We got a real good piece tonight,” said Sheppard, who struggled in his heat on Thursday and finished 13th in his A-main. “We a little bit off last night, but we’ve been working real hard … we’ll see what we can do in the feature.” … Bobby Pierce made a simple pronouncement after running away with a victory in the second heat: “Man, this car feels great right now.” … Billy Moyer’s Heat 3 win duplicated his score in a Thursday prelim, but he expressed a more positive feeling after his latest score. “We felt better there than we did last night,” he said. … Tim Manville had his car’s engine repaired in time to start the third heat and he rebounded well, charging from the 10th starting spot to finish fourth and crack the feature lineup. … Jimmy Mars — the Dream winner exactly 20 years ago — said his car “felt real good on the bottom” as he recovered from an opening-lap slip up the track on a cool tire to claim the fourth heat by 1.782 seconds over Steve Francis.

Consolation lineup

(12 laps; top four transfer)
Row 1: Shanon Buckingham, Jacob Hawkins
Row 2: Brian Shirley, Kody Evans
Row 3: Brian Harris, Eddie Carrier Jr.
Row 4: Jon Henry, Andrew Reaume
Row 5: Jeff Babcock, Nick Hoffman
Row 6: Rod Conley, Tyler Bruening
Row 7: Brett Miller, Joey Moriarty
Row 8: Forrest Trent, Kenny Collins
Row 9: Ryan King, Brian Ligon
Row 10: Jeff Beyers

Fourth heat

Recovering from a poor start that saw him sitting sixth on the first lap, former Dream winner Jimmy Mars went under Steve Francis exiting turn four to take control halfway through the 10-lapper. Steve Francis, who emerged from a free-for-all start on the first lap to take command, held on to finish a solid second with polesitter Billy Moyer Jr. fighting off Jonathan Davenport to finish third. Davenport and seventh-starting Steve Casebolt got the final transfer spots in the caution-free prelim. Andrew Reaume started outside the front row and faded to finish seventh.

Finish (top five transfer): Jimmy Mars, Steve Francis, Billy Moyer Jr., Jonathan Davenport, Steve Casebolt, Kody Evans, Andrew Reaume, Tyler Bruening, Kenny Collins.

Third heat

Two-time Dream winner Billy Moyer got rolling on the high side, pulling away from fellow front-row starter Chris Simpson for the victory. Devin Moran finished third with tail-starting Tim Manville in fourth and Ricky Weiss in fifth. Manville, who made a daring mid-race move between Rod Conley and Jon Henry entering turn three just before the midway points, tagged the tail of the heat after engine problems kept him out of time trials. Jeff Beyers took a single lap and retired in the caution-free heat.

Finish (top five transfer): Billy Moyer, Chris Simpson, Devin Moran, Tim Manville, Ricky Weiss, Jon Henry, Brian Shirley, Rod Conley, Forrest Trent, Jeff Beyers.

Second heat

Bobby Pierce used early high-side momentum to get out front, then cruised to a 10-lap victory. Earl Pearson Jr. muscled past polesitter Mason Zeigler on the third lap, but Zeigler dove under Pearson on the eighth lap in turn one to regain the spot. Pearson settled for third with Mike Marlar not far behind in fourth and former Dream winner Dale McDowell grabbing the fifth and final transfer spot. A piece of debris on the frontstretch was picked up before the race began, but the race ran caution-free.

Finish (top five transfer): Bobby Pierce, Mason Zeigler, Earl Pearson Jr., Mike Marlar, Dale McDowell, Jacob Hawkins, Eddie Carrier Jr., Nick Hoffman, Joey Moriarty, Brian Ligon.

First heat

Breaking away from a first-lap side-by-side duel with fellow front-row starter Kent Robinson, high-running Brandon Sheppard shook off Thursday's subpar performance by cruising to a 10-lap heat victory. He won by more than three seconds. Fifth-starting Tim McCreadie used the inside lane to race to a second-place finish while Robinson settled for third. Don O'Neal was fourth and R.J. Conley, the night's second quick qualifier, nabbed the fifth and final transfer spot.

Finish (top five transfer): Brandon Sheppard, Tim McCreadie, Kent Robinson, Don O'Neal, R.J. Conley, Brian Harris, Shanon Buckingham, Jeff Babock, Brett Miller, Ryan King.

Qualifying

Heat race lineups

(10 laps; top five transfer)
First heat
Row 1: Kent Robinson, Brandon Sheppard
Row 2: Don O’Neal, R.J. Conley
Row 3: Tim McCreadie, Ryan King
Row 4: Brian Harris, Shanon Buckingham
Row 5: Jeff Babcock, Brett Miller
Second heat
Row 1: Mason Zeigler, Bobby Pierce
Row 2: Mike Marlar, Earl Pearson Jr.
Row 3: Dale McDowell, Joey Moriarty
Row 4: Jacob Hawkins, Eddie Carrier Jr.
Row 5: Nick Hoffman, Brian Ligon
Third heat
Row 1: Chris Simpson, Billy Moyer
Row 2: Ricky Weiss, Devin Moran
Row 3: Rod Conley, Jon Henry
Row 4: Brian Shirley, Forrest Trent
Row 5: Jeff Beyers, Tim Manville
Fourth heat
Row 1: Billy Moyer Jr., Andrew Reaume
Row 2: Kody Evans, Steve Francis
Row 3: Jimmy Mars, Jonathan Davenport
Row 4: Steve Casebolt, Tyler Bruening
Row 5: Kenny Collins

Pre-race notes

The briefest of showers passed through the area around 1 p.m., but the skies cleared wonderfully and the temperature topped 80 degrees as the start of hot laps approached. … DIRTcar officials brought 25 drivers to Eldora’s infield care center on Friday afternoon to conducted random drug tests under the World Racing Group’s new-for-2017 drug testing policy. … WRG’s affiliation with Eldora for the UMP DIRTcar-sanctioned Dream also includes the use of the World of Outlaws Craftsman Late Model Series truck and trailer, which is parked in the pit area and has been designated as the place where top-finishing teams must take their tires for postrace sampling. … Tyler Erb of New Waverly, Texas, who is ranked third in the WoO points standings, struggled on Eldora’s slick Thursday surface and didn’t qualify for a feature. After missing just one A-main field this season before last night (the Lucas Oil Series Bad Boy 98 at Batesville, Ark., in April), Erb admitted his DNQ was “frustrating, but it’s a reality check.” … Jerry Bowersock of Wapakoneta, Ohio, is missing from Friday’s night’s field after competing on Thursday. Bowersock, who plans to be back for Saturday’s finale, racing his open-wheel modified tonight at Limaland Motorsports Park in Lima, Ohio, where he’s ranked second in the points standings and chasing a NASCAR-sanctioned title that pays $6,000. … Tim Manville of Highland, Ill., who ranked 38th in Dream points after Thursday, discovered a broken retainer in his car’s engine late Friday afternoon while prepping for the evening’s action. At the start of practice his team was awaiting a replacement part to arrive from engine builder Mike Dargie’s shop in Richmond, Ind.; with an estimated half-hour fix, the likelihood of Manville participating in time trials appeared slim but he was considering tagging a heat race if repairs were made in time. … Matt Lux of Franklin, Pa., had some trouble getting comfortable Thursday in his first appearance at Eldora since 2008, but he gained confidence with his consolation race performance in. “We made some changes and I felt pretty good,” said Lux, who returned to Eldora because his car owner, Jim Detman, had never been to the track and wanted to make the trip. “Hopefully we’ll be better tonight.” … Another driver back at Eldora this weekend after a lengthy absence is Brian Harris of Davenport, Iowa, who accepted an offer to drive veteran Iowan Jay Johnson’s Black Diamond machine just days before the start of the event. The 38-year-old Harris didn’t qualify in his first Dirt Late Model start since the end of the 2015 season when he decided to stop racing because he was hampered by lingering effects of a serious neck injury he suffered in a 2007 crash at West Liberty (Iowa) Raceway. Harris said exercises he’s been doing over the past year have eliminated the pain he was feeling, prompting him to climb back behind the wheel.

Time trials (unofficial)

Driver (car no.), hometown

1. Dennis Erb Jr. (28), Carpentersville, Ill., 17.819
2. R.J. Conley (71C), Wheelersburg, Ohio, 17.902
3. Scott Bloomquist (0), Mooresburg, Tenn., 17.933
4. Earl Pearson Jr. (1), Jacksonville, Fla., 18.005
5. Donald McIntosh (7), Dawsonville, Ga., 18.009
6. Devin Moran (9), Dresden, Ohio, 18.094
7. Chris Ferguson (22), Mount Holly, N.C., 18.128
8. Steve Francis (15), Bowling Green, Ky., 18.18
9. Frank Heckenast Jr. (99jr), Frankfort, Ill., 18.203
10. Don O’Neal (5), Martinsville, Ind., 18.214
11. Timothy Culp (C8), Prattsville, Ark., 18.275
12. MIke Marlar (157), Winfield, Tenn., 18.282
13. Tyler Erb (91), New Waverly, Texas, 18.303
14. Ricky Weiss (7W), Headingley, Manitoba, 18.309
15. Darrell Lanigan (14), Union, Ky., 18.311
16. Kody Evans (4G), Camden, Ohio, 18.327
17. Chris Madden (44), Gray Court, S.C., 18.375
18. Brandon Sheppard (1), New Berlin, Ill., 18.381
19. Jake O’Neil (0), Tucson, Ariz., 18.383
20. Bobby Pierce (32), Oakwood, Ill., 18.386
21. Jackie Boggs (4B), Grayson, Ky., 18.395
22. Billy Moyer (21), Batesville, Ark., 18.412
23. Shane Clanton (25), Zebulon, Ga., 18.459
24. Andrew Reaume (88), Blenheim, Ontario, 18.481
25. Jeep Van Wormer (55), Pinconning, Mich., 18.491
26. Kent Robinson (7R), Bloomington, Ind., 18.493
27. Nick Latham (31), Winchester, Ohio, 18.494
28. Mason Zeigler (25z), Chalk Hill, Pa., 18.497
29. Kyle Bronson (40B), Brandon, Fla., 18.556
30. Chris Simpson (32), Oxford, Iowa, 18.615
31. Hudson O’Neal (71), Martinsville, Ind., 18.66
32. Billy Moyer Jr. (21), Batesville, Ark., 18.674
33. Shannon Babb (18), Moweaqua, Ill., 18.711
34. Tim McCreadie (39), Watertown, N.Y., 18.759
35. Brandon Overton (116), Evans, Ga., 18.784
36. Dale McDowell (17m), Chickamauga, Ga., 18.833
37. Rusty Schlenk (1CJ), Weston, Ohio, 18.835
38. Rod Conley (71R), Wheelersburg, Ohio, 18.855
39. Mike Mataragas (1m), DeKalb, Ill., 18.893
40. Jimmy Mars (28), Menomonie, Wis., 18.908
41. Zack Dohm (17), Cross Lanes, W.Va., 18.94
42. Ryan King (1G), Seymour, Tenn., 18.957
43. Gregg Satterlee (22), Indiana, Pa., 18.983
44. Joey Moriarty (51), Peoria, Ariz., 19.019
45. Chase Junghans (18), Manhattan, Kan., 19.061
46. Spencer Diercks (29D), Davenport, Iowa, 19.063
47. Jon Henry (15), Ada, Ohio, 19.063
48. Jonathan Davenport (49), Blairsville, Ga., 19.069
49. Jesse Lay (33), Walton, Ky., 19.107
50. Brian Harris (93), Davenport, Iowa, 19.114
51. Casey Roberts (101), Toccoa, Ga., 19.137
52. Jacob Hawkins (20), Fairmont. W.Va., 19.16
53. Scott James (83), Bright, Ind., 19.174
54. Brian Shirley (3S), Chatham, Ill., 19.178
55. Jason Feger (25), Bloomington, Ill., 19.195
56. Steve Casebolt (C9), Richmond, Ind., 19.201
57. Casey Noonan (1N), Sylvania, Ohio, 19.222
58. Shanon Buckingham (50), Morristown, Tenn., 19.225
59. Tim Lance (48), Brimfield, Ill., 19.232
60. Eddie Carrier Jr. (10), Salt Rock, W.Va., 19.266
61. Rodney Sanders (20), Happy, Texas, 19.269
62. Forrest Trent (101T), Talbot, Tenn., 19.28
63. Troy Worrick (79), Marion, Ind., 19.302
64. Tyler Bruening (16), Decorah, Iowa, 19.38
65. Jason Jameson (12), Lawrenceburg, Ind., 19.422
66. Jeff Babcock (7B), Wayne, Ohio, 19.501
67. Devin Gilpin (1G), Columbus, Ind., 19.519
68. Nick Hoffman (2), Mooresville, N.C., 19.554
69. Blake Spencer (6S), St. Augustine, Fla., 19.625
70. Matt Lux (111), Franklin, Pa., 19.639
71. Jeff Beyers (27), Pana, Ill., 19.653
72. Kenny Collins (1C), Colbert, Ga., 19.668
73. Dustin Nobbe (5N), Batesville, Ind., 19.717
74. Brett Miller (97), Metamora, Ohio, 19.767
75. Bryant Dickinson (5*), Ionia, Mich., 19.868
76. Brian Ligon (444), Evans, Ga., 21.151
77. Jimmy Owens (20), Newport, Tenn., no time
78. Tim Manville (33), Highland, Ill., no time
79. Jerry Bowersock (95J), Wapakoneta, Ohio, no time

Accrued Dream weekend points

(Through Thursday's events)

1. Chris Madden - 988
2. Scott Bloomquist - 986
3. Billy Moyer - 970
4. Don O’Neal - 955
5. Chris Simpson - 953
6. Darrell Lanigan - 952
7. Gregg Satterlee - 952
8. Jonathan Davenport - 944
9. Dale McDowell - 938
10. Brandon Overton - 937
11. Tim McCreadie - 936
12. Brandon Sheppard - 934
13. Devin Moran - 928
14. Kent Robinson - 927
15. Zack Dohm - 920
16. R.J. Conley - 914
17. Shane Clanton - 913
18. Earl Pearson Jr. - 910
19. Steve Francis - 910
20. Frank Heckenast Jr. - 906
21. Eddie Carrier Jr. - 896
22. Billy Moyer Jr. - 894
23. Dennis Erb Jr. - 892
24. Jimmy Mars - 891
25. Casey Roberts - 890
26. Bobby Pierce - 887
27. Shannon Babb - 886
28. Jeep Van Wormer - 886
29. Hudson O'Neal - 884
30. Steve Casebolt - 882
31. Nick Hoffman - 880
32. Rusty Schlenk - 878
33. Jon Henry - 875
34. Mike Marlar - 864
35. Dustin Nobbe - 862
36. Ryan King - 858
37. Jason Feger - 856
38. Tim Manville - 854
39. Devin Gilpin - 852
40. Jeff Babcock - 844
41. Chase Junghans - 842
42. Nick Latham - 840
43. Jake O'Neil - 836
44. Kyle Bronson - 822
45. Shanon Buckingham - 820
46. Jacob Hawkins - 816
47. Jackie Boggs - 814
48. Mason Zeigler - 812
49. Brian Shirley - 806
50. Timothy Culp - 804
51. Andrew Reaume - 798
52. Rodney Sanders - 788
53. Jimmy Owens - 786
54. Spencer Diercks - 782
55. Jason Jameson - 768
56. Chris Ferguson - 764
57. Rod Conley - 762
58. Tyler Bruening - 762
59. Scott James - 758
60. Tim Lance - 758
61. Bryant Dickinson - 750
62. Mike Mataragas - 744
63. Tyler Erb - 742
64. Casey Noonan - 742
65. Ricky Weiss - 742
66. Joey Moriarty - 738
67. Jesse Lay - 734
68. Matt Lux - 734
69. Donald McIntosh - 732
70. Forrest Trent - 732
71. Brian Ligon - 716
72. Kenny Collins - 716
73. Brett Miller - 710
74. Kody Evans - 708
75. Blake Spencer - 704
76. Brian Harris - 700
77. Jerry Bowersock - 700
78. Troy Worrick - 684
79. Jeff Beyers - 0

Friday's race schedule

6 p.m. - Hot laps by qualifying group
6:30 p.m. - Time trials
7:55 p.m. - Invocation and national anthem
8 p.m. - Racing begins
- Heat races (10 laps; alternating odd/even with top five transferring to main event)
- Consolation races (12 laps; one for odd, one for even and top four transferring to main event)
- Odd feature race (25 laps)
- Even feature race (25 laps)

Friday's event schedule

6 a.m.-6 p.m.: Showers open (front of Lot 2)
7-11 a.m.: Breakfast at turn-four concessions
10 a.m. Main gate ticket office opens (tickets, pit passes and will call)
10 a.m.: Turn-three race registration opens (pit passes and media credential sign-in)
10 a.m.: Turn-four ticket office opens (tickets and pit passes)
10 a.m.: All ADA parking opens (permit required)
11 a.m.: Grandstand cleared and secured for grand opening
Noon: All admission gates/suites/concessions open
Noon: Turn-three pit gate opens
Noon: Technical inspection for Late Models
5 p.m.: Drivers’ meeting
6 p.m.: Hot laps
8 p.m.: Racing begins