GREENSBORO, N.C. - VMI's Felix Kitur won his opening heat of the 800-meters on the first day of the NCAA Preliminary Round meet, hosted by North Carolina A&T in Greensboro, N.C.

With the win, Kitur advances to Friday's second round, where he will compete for a berth at the National Championships in Eugene, Ore. Kitur's time of 1:48.60 made him the third-quickest qualifier for Friday's proceedings on the warm, humid day.

"Felix ran a solid, smart race," stated VMI assistant track and head cross country coach Paul Spangler. "He did what he needed to in order to move on, and now it comes down to Friday's race."

The VMI standout's race went out on an average pace, with the leader completing 400 meters in approximately 53 seconds. Kitur was in a group battling for fourth and fifth after that opening lap. He was able to clear those runners and move to fourth by himself with 250 meters to go, and then progress to third 50 meters later. Coming around the last turn, Kitur made the pass for second and then ran down Penn State's Ryan Foster in the home stretch to claim the win.

Kitur's race Friday evening in Greensboro is set for a 6:30 p.m. start. The top three in each of the three heats, in addition to the next three fastest times, will advance to compete for a national title in Eugene, Ore.