Former Hampton University track & field standout Francena McCorory helped Team USA's women's 4x400-meter relay team advance to the finals at Olympic Stadium on Friday evening.

McCorory (class of 2011), a three-time NCAA champion in the 400-meter dash, ran the second leg of the race, as she helped Team USA record a preliminary-best 3:22.09 in winning the second heat. Keisha Baker, Diamond Dixon, and DeeDee Trotter (who won bronze in the women's 400-meter dash) also made up the Team USA squad.

Russia posted the second-fastest time, more than a second slower at 3:23.11. Great Britain, Jamaica, Ukraine, France, Czech Republic, and Nigeria also qualified for the final.

The final of the women's 4x400-meter relay will be held on Saturday at 8:25 p.m. local time. McCorory is expected to run in the final, but even if she doesn't, she will be eligible for a medal if Team USA finishes in the top three, by virtue of her running in the preliminaries.

McCorory ran the anchor leg in August of 2011, when Team USA won gold in the 4x400-meter relay at the World Championships in South Korea.

If Team USA medals on Saturday, McCorory will be the second Hamptonian to medal in London; former Lady Pirate Kellie Wells (class of 2006) captured the bronze medal earlier this week in the women's 100-meter hurdles.