Preston made the early running, forcing a corner in the opening minute which had Michel Kuipers scrambling from his line to gather.
Craig Brown's side grabbed the lead after 16 minutes through captain Lucketti, who rose above a static Brighton defence to bury a header past Kuipers from Eddie Lewis' corner.
Preston doubled their advantage through Cresswell, who grabbed his ninth goal of the season from close range on 36 minutes.
Brighton began the second half at lightning pace and were rewarded on 52 minutes when Zamora's centre was nodded into Simon Rodger's path by Gary Hart.
The former Palace midfielder thumped a volley past the helpless David Lucas to drag his side back into the game.
The visitors' pressure finally told on Preston in the 72nd minute when Zamora, through whom all Brighton's best moves came, played in Steve Sidwell who produced a neat finish from just inside the area.
Hart and Robbie Pethick went close to snatching the victory for Brighton, the latter forcing another tip-over from Lucas.