Sean Helmke at DirectAthletics
2015-16: During cross country season, set a new personal best at the SoCon Championships (24:56) and earned all-conference second team honors in the process by finishing 11th...finished fourth at the George Mason Invite...had set a personal best previously at the Furman XC Classic, where he finished 21st...outdoors, focused on the 3,000-meter steeplechase and finished second in the conference...was also 16th in the 5K...set a new PR in the steeple in win at Charlotte Invite...also was victorious at the Bucknell Challenge...fourth at the HPU Vertklasse Meet...indoors, was part of the runner-up DMR squad and was also eighth in the 5K...finished 11th in the 3K at the Virginia Tech Challenge.
2014-15: Had a strong outdoor season that included PR's in both the 1,500 and the steeplechase...crossed the line sixth in the steeple at the conference outdoor meet, with a new best time of 9:24.34...also placed 13th in the 5K...ran a 4:01.67 1,500-meters at the Charlotte Invite, breaking his previous collegiate best by over five seconds...indoors, finished 10th in the 5K and anchored the fifth-place DMR squad at the conference meet...finished 26th in the mile in his season debut at the Hokie Invite...ran in all seven of VMI's cross country events...finished 19th at the SoCon Championships, where he posted a PR of 25:15...had three top-10 finishes - UNCG, JMU and George Mason - and also was 11th at Western Carolina...finished the year as VMI's top finisher at the SE Regional Championships, where he placed 69th overall.
2013-14: Ran in all six cross country events and had his season headlined by the Big South Championships, where he earned all-conference honors with a 10th place finish...set a new 8K PR the week before at the Blue Ridge Open...was 15th at the Charlotte Invitational...closed out his season with a 10K PR of 31:25 at the SE Regional Championships...competed in three events at the conference indoor meet (mile, 3K and 5K)...finished ninth in the mile for his best result among the three, setting a new PR in the process...set a new 5K PR at the YSU indoor meet (15:10.90), finishing eighth...finished seventh among Division I competitors in the mile at the NYU Saturday Night Shootout...limited to two meets during the outdoor season due to health.
2012-13: Competed in all six VMI XC races as a true freshmen...quickly served notice of his talent with top five finishes in both early season events, a fourth at the VMI Invite and a third at the JMU Open...would post a PR in VMI's next event, the Paul Short Run, as he timed in at 25:54...was 25th at the Big South Championships...finished as VMI's #4 runner at the NCAA SE Regionals, clocking in at 32:46 on the 10K course...took part in a handful of distance races indoors, including an 11th-place finish in the 3K and a 13th-place result in the 5K at the conference indoor meet...was second in his steeplechase debut at the Liberty Collegiate Invite...finished eighth in the steeple at the Big South Outdoor Championships with a PR of 9:31.69...also finished 15th in the 5K at that event with a PR of 15:12.43.
High School/Personal: First in 3,200-meters, third in 1,600-meters at 2012 indoor Eastern Regional...finished ninth at AAA States in 3,200-meters...Personal bests: 1,600-meters - 4:16.68, 3,200-meters - 9:32.06, 5K (XC) - 15:54.
Personal Bests:
1,500-Meter Run: 4:01.67 (2015 Charlotte Invite)
Mile: 4:20.14 (2014 BSC Championships)
3K: 8:41.10
3K Steeple: 9:21.33 (2016 Charlotte Invite)
5K (Indoor): 15:10.90 (2014 BSC Championships)
5K (Outdoor): 15:12.43 (2013 BSC Championships)
8K: 24;56 (2015 SoCon Championships)
10K (XC): 31:25 (2013 SE Regional Championships)
