INA, Ill. (August 9, 2022) — Rend Lake College welcomed Hall of Fame coach Mike Helton as he leads their women's basketball team for the 2022-2023 season. Helton has a long history of success and plans to bring that level of excellence to the RLC court.
Helton began his coaching career early. He was volunteering in the youth league in Eldorado while in high school. There, he played for two Hall of Fame coaches. He was then an assistant coach at South Eastern Illinois College. During this time, their 1989-1990 team qualified for the National Tournament. Many of the players from this team joined the ranks of Division I programs.
In 1992-1993, Helton began his astonishing career at Goreville High School. In 28 years, he won 512 games, reached Elite 8 five times, Sweet 16 ten times, and won 16 conference championships along with 11 regional titles.
Nine different student-athletes earned All-State honors during his tenure at Goreville. In 2015, he was named to the Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Hall of Fame. In 2020, he was named to the Southern Illinois Coaches Association (SICA) Hall of Fame.
Rend Lake College is proud to have Coach Helton on their team, and they wish him the best of luck this season.