BILLINGS, Mont.- Rocky Cross Country and Track and Field will be well represented at the 2025 Big Sky State Games in Billings, as seven different current and former Battlin' Bears were announced to compete in the Montana Mile and the first-ever Montana 100-meter. 

The Montana Mile will be held for the 34th time for men and the 26th time for women as a part of the Opening Ceremonies held at Lockwood High School on Friday, July 18th at 7 pm. The Montana Mile is an invitational competition that features some of the state's fastest high school, college, and post-collegiate runners. 

In the Montana Mile, one current Battlin' Bear and three Rocky alums will toe the starting line next Friday. Below are Rocky's participants. 

Caleb Tomac (Sophomore - Havre, Mont.)

Tomac wrapped up an impressive freshman campaign for the Battlin' Bears, where he helped the Battlin' Bears to a runner-up finish at the Frontier Conference Championships in Cross Country and competed at the NAIA National Championship, where he finished in the top 200 individually. Tomac earned a pair of All-Conference finishes at the Frontier Conference T/F Championships, finishing third overall in the men's 1,500-meter and second place as a member of the 4x800-meter relay team. He recorded the fastest 1,500-meter time by a Battlin' Bear this season, going head-to-head with a field of NCAA DI opponents at the Al Manuel Classic, crossing the line in 3:57.09. 

This will be his first Montana Mile competition. 

Jackson Duffey ('22 Graduate - Ronan, Mont.)

Duffey graduated from Rocky Mountain College in 2022, finishing his XC/TF career with multiple NAIA National Championship qualifications, including two trips in the 5,000 meters in 2022, finishing top-20 in both races. He still holds the program record in the indoor 5k, as well as top-ten marks in the 5k, 10k, and 4x800 meter relay in outdoors. His best time of 24:49.1 in the 8k ranks 12th in Rocky XC program history. Duffey spent two seasons as head coach for Rocky XC and was the Co-Coach of the Year in the Frontier Conference in 2024. 

This will be his second Montana Mile competition. 

Jackson Wilson ('24 Graduate - Box Elder, S.D.)

Wilson graduated from Rocky Mountain College in 2024, departing the program as one of the most decorated distance runners in the region. Wilson was the 2023 NAIA National Champion in Cross Country and earned nine NAIA All-American honors over his career in Cross Country and Track and Field. Wilson holds numerous program records, including the 8k in cross country, the mile and 3k in indoor T/F, and the 5k and 10k in outdoor T/F. He also served as an assistant coach for Rocky XC during the 2024 season. 

This will be his first Montana Mile competition. 

Sydney Little Light ('23 Graduate - Crow Agency, Mont.)

Little Light, a two-time Montana Mile champion ('22 & '23), will compete in the Montana Mile for the fourth time. Little Light had a career full of accolades in a Battlin' Bear uniform, earning a NAIA National Championship in the outdoor 1,500-meter in 2022, along with seven NAIA All-American honors. Little Light holds the program records in the 5k in cross country, the 800, mile, 3k, and 5k in indoors, and the 800, 1,500, and 5k in outdoors. Little Light ran for NCAA DI Eastern Kentucky in her graduate season, breaking the program record in the mile, before returning to RMC to serve as an assistant coach for Rocky XC & T/F during the 2024 season. 
 

---

This year's Big Sky State Games will also feature the inaugural Montana 100-meter, which features two current Battlin' Bears and a recent graduate. Like the Montana Mile, the Montana 100 is an invitational race and will feature some of the Treasure State's fastest high school, college, and post-collegiate sprinters. The inaugural race will not feature heats, hosting just one male and one female 100-meter race. Below are Rocky's competitors. 

Ryan LaMere (Sophomore - Billings, Mont.)

LaMere recently wrapped up a strong freshman season for the Battlin' Bears, capped off with a Frontier Conference Championship in the 100 meters, becoming the first Battlin' Bear in program history to do so. He also anchored the 4x100-meter relay team that finished in first place at the conference championship meet. LaMere set the program record in the 100-meter and is tied for the program record in the 200-meter in outdoors, while also setting the program record in the 60-meter in indoors. 

Drifter Skillicorn (Junior - Polson, Mont.)

Skillicorn has been a versatile contributor for the Battlin' Bears in track and field for the past two seasons. At the Frontier Conference Championships this past season, Skillicorn earned All-Conference honors in the 400 and the 4x400-meter relays, while also earning top-five finishes in the 200-meter and long jump. In indoors, he owns the fourth fastest 200-meter time in program history and the second-best long jump mark, while also tying for the program record in the 200-meter in outdoors, also holding top-ten marks in the 100 and 400 meters. 

Kellan Wahl ('25 Graduate - Billings, Mont.)

Wahl was a dominant force in the Frontier Conference over her four seasons in a Battlin' Bear uniform, totaling 13 All-Conference honors over four seasons, including three straight titles in the 100-meters and a conference championship in the 200-meters in 2025. Wahl earned one trip to the NAIA National Championships as a member of the Distance Medley Relay in 2023, where the team finished 17th. After concluding her career in 2025, Wahl holds program records in the 60, 200, and 4x400 meter in indoors and the 100, 200, and 4x100 meter relay in outdoors.