GREENSBORO, N.C. – Senior Keith Nkrumah and junior James Taylor moved a step closer to qualifying for the NCAA Outdoor Track & Field Championships Friday night, as both advanced through the first round of their respective events at the NCAA East Preliminary Round at Irwin Belk Track on the campus of North Carolina A&T.

Nkrumah won his heat in the 110 meter hurdles in a time of 13.83 seconds. Officially, he was the No. 6 qualifier out of the 24 who advanced to Saturday's national quarterfinal round. Athletes must place in the top 12 of the quarterfinals to advance to Eugene, Ore., the site of the outdoor nationals next month. Nkrumah qualified for nationals once before, as a sophomore in 2011 in the same event.

Taylor was second in his heat of the 200 meters Friday, clocking a time of 20.92 seconds. He is the No. 11 qualifier in the field of 24 in Saturday's quarterfinals. Taylor is seeking his first-ever bid to the outdoor national meet.

Taylor, Nkrumah, Damian Smith and Kenneth Smith will also compete in the 4x100 relay on Saturday, the final day of the East Preliminary Round. The women's 4x100 relay team of Torie Cunningham, Brittney McCants, Qua'Nesha Wallace and Champagne Bell will also run Saturday, while freshman Kiara Howell will participate in the shot put.