9/13/2025
Selinsgrove Speedway
Zeigler Wins National Open, Kepner and Stroup Claim Wins
Written by Bert Wojcik
PASS Press Release Written by Frank Buhrman
The Selinsgrove National Opens have been a staple on the racing calendar for many years. Last year's events did not host any of the three National Opens that are held at the Selinsgrove Speedway. This year, the team at Selinsgrove are bringing them back in a big way with National Open Weekend. It kicked off Saturday night with the 26th running of the Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Model National Open. Chalk Hill, PA's Mason Zeigler would take home his first National Open win. After a brief rain delay, Kreamer, PA’s Kruz Kepner would become the first repeat winner for the Keller's Auto Body PA Sprint Series 305 Sprint Cars. In what could be dubbed the race of the night, Richfield, PA’s AJ Stroup would get his first win at Selinsgrove since 2016 in the Superior Homes Street Stocks.
23 Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Models signed in for the $10,000 pay day. The night started off faster than anyone expected. First with Beavertown’s Hayes Mattern breaking the old track record for Super Late Models of 18.381 set by Tyler Emory back in June of 2023. Mattern would go 18.283. But then Zeigler would come out and shatter that time setting Fast Tee’s Fast Time at an 18.246 at at 104.492 MPH average.
The 35 lap Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Model National Open would see Winchester, VA’s Trever Feathers and Mattern take the front row. Mattern would get the jump on Feathers as the 72 seemed to miss the set up and faded quickly. Zeigler would get up to second by the time the field got down the back straight. Feathers would then lose third to current Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Model points leader, New Oxford’s Rick Eckert. First caution would come as Mike Lupfer would come to a stop in turn four. He would not return.
On the restart, Mattern waited a little longer to get on the throttle and would use that to his advantage as Zeigler would try to look low but couldn’t match Mattern's run. Meanwhile behind them, Indiana, PA’s Gregg Satterlee, Trever Feathers, and Dover’s Gene Knaub would have a three-way battle with Satterlee making a daring move up high to avoid contact with Feathers. Satterlee would crack the top five just as the yellow flew for Dylan Yoder with a flat right rear.
During that caution, a brief shower would come over the speedway. Officials were getting all thumbs up from the drivers to say the track is good and the call to go one up from the flag stand was given. Mattern once again in the front for the Delaware Double File restart where Zeigler would take the high side as he was all night on the restarts. Eckert would get ahead of Zeigler momentarily but Zeigler would take the second spot back. Great racing behind the leaders would come to a stop with Winchester, VA’s J.T. Spence would come to a stop, losing the drive shaft just before the entrance to the infield and drawing the third caution of the event.
Zeigler would move to the bottom on the restart to try and get a nose in on Mattern in turn one. It worked for a second but the high side was just better. Satterlee would take a two-for-one to get up to third and wanted more as he was closing quickly on Zeigler. In a rare occurrence, Eckert would come to a slow on the top of turn four and pull it in. They would look under the hood of the 24E and Eckert would rejoin. Zeigler would try to send it again on the bottom but then Denton, MD’s Matt Glanden would come to a stop in turn one with a right front flat. Once again another caution!
6 time winner of the Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Model National Open, Danville’s Jeff Rine, would start the drive for number 7. Rine would fight with Knaub, Satterlee, and Waldorf, MD's Kenny Moreland. Rine would use all he could on the big half mile to get around all three to get into third. With about 13 laps to go, Mattern would finally hit lap traffic for the first time. The race was on as it was clear Mattern wasn’t as good in dirty air. Zeigler cut over 2 seconds off in 4 laps to get on the back deck of Mattern. Zeigler would get a run off of turn two. Trying to go up high, Mattern would slide up and push Zeigler up the track and Mattern would hold the lead. Mattern would push again in turn two and Zeigler would gain back what he lost. Zeigler would go up on the high side and get the run off of turn four and use the lap car of Jason Schmidt as a pick to clear Mattern. Rine would then join the fight for second as Mattern was losing time quick to Zeigler. Knaub would also be in the fight. Just then, Spike Moore from Defiance, PA would come to a stop over in turn one.
Green-White-Checkered finish was in store. Did Mattern, Rine or Knaub have anything for Zeigler? Absolutely not. While the caution wiped out a three second lead by Zeigler, there was no denying Mason Zeigler from redemption from the Paul Long Memorial where a right front went down and put the 25Z into the wall. Zeigler would be near flawless all night as he would win his second Selinsgrove Ford Super Late Model feature of the year and his first Super Late Model National Open. Rine would get around Mattern for the second spot. Mattern would hold off Knaub for fourth, and Satterlee rounded out the top 5.
“No, I wanted them both,” Zeigler would say when asked if this made up for the Paul Long Memorial in High Caliber Cranes Victory Lane. “Hayes is a fast dude, you can't underestimate the kid. I started getting comfortable and started to get comfortable in lap traffic. This motor has almost 1200 laps on it and it's due for a rebuild and it's still working great.”
“I was ready to load it in the trailer after we lost the drive shaft in qualifying," Rine said. "Everyone worked their butt off to get this car where it needed to be. I probably would have been third if the last caution didn't come out. My tires were getting hot.”
“I think I was driving a little too hard,” Mattern said. “It's hard to judge your own pace around this place when you're in front. I think I was charging the corners too hard. But when Zeigler got around me, I seemed to settle down then. Rine and Zeigler were just a little bit better tonight.”
Mike Alleman shot to the front of the PA Sprint Series Sprint Car race over Chris Kreider, Dustin Young, John Braim, and Paul Moyer. Alleman and Braim opened a sizable lead in the early stages of the race. On lap seven, Braim found some space on the high side of the speedway and took over the lead but did not run away from Alleman until he started to struggle with lapped traffic.Things unraveled quickly on lap 11, when Braim saw Drew Young flipping, applied his brakes, slammed into the wall and flipped.
“I’m not sure what happened,” Braim said. “I saw Drew going over, hit the brakes and I don’t know if I got sucked up into the fence or what.”Cody Hoover was also involved.
The incident handed the lead back to Alleman. Kruz Kepner used the restart to get by Ken Duke Jr. for the runner-up position, trailing Alleman until lap 15 when he tested first high then pulled low to take the lead.Kepner took the checkered flag by 2.1 seconds over Alleman, Duke, Dustin Young and Dylan Smith.
17 Superior Home Street Stocks signed in for the final feature of the evening. Richfield’s AJ Stroup and Selinsgrove’s Cory Long headed the field. Current Superior Homes Street Stocks points leader Annville’s Jason Geesaman was making the charge to the front from his fourth starting spot. Geesman and Long would make contact. Geesaman had the car sideways and somehow held onto it and still got second. Geesaman would close in on Stroup and would take the lead for the moment but Stroup would use the high side to get around Geesaman. Geesaman would return the favor and take the lead back at the line until the lap car of Jason Trump would hold up Geesaman and Stroup would take the lead. Caution would fly for Ryan Bloom spinning over in turn 3.
On the restart with clean air, Stroup would pull away. But Geesaman would take advantage of Stroup getting tight and take the lead away. It would be the same thing it was all night where Stroup was better in one and two. Geesaman tried to go up in front of Stroup. With inches separating them and the wall, Stroup would take the lead for the final time to take his first win at the Selinsgrove Speedway since back in 2016 with the Pro Stock division. Geesaman, AJ Hoffman, Aiden and Brad Mitch rounded out the top 5.
“I ran as hard as I could up top,” Stroup said in High Caliber Cranes Victory Lane. “Geesaman left me a hole that was about three inches too small. I just rubbed him and the wall all the way down the back stretch. I thought I messed up on the last lap, but he was fun to race with and thanks to Jasen for running me clean.”
Selinsgrove Speedway is back in action tonight with the 41st running of the Jim Nace Memorial National Open for the High Caliber Cranes 410 Sprint Cars paying $15,626 to win. The Creekside Auto Sales Limited Late Models will round out the National Open Weekend Card.
Log onto www.raceselinsgrove.com for all updated news and points, as well as results.
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Submitted By: Jenna Mowery
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