The USA Hockey National Player Development Camps are by invite only, with only 43 girls from Minnesota being selected for the Girls 15 group. Earning a spot is difficult, but local standout Bailey Rupp did just that, earning the nod to participate in next week’s camp.

Rupp played on the Bemidji girls varsity team last season as an eighth-grader and now has a chance to represent her team and hometown on a national level.

“I’m really excited to see all the people from all over the country, meet them, and see how they are at hockey,” Rupp said. “It’s going to be a ton of good coaches and lots of hockey to play.”

And what she learns, she plans to bring back to her Lumberjack teammates.

“Everything I learn, I’m going to teach our team to make us better,” she added.

As excited as she is for the opportunity to learn from the best around, with the best around, she says she is equally as excited to represent her school. “I think it’s really cool that I get to represent Bemidji. It’ll be a ton of fun and like, nobody really knows about Bemidji, so I’m sort of excited for that.”

The camp is held at the Goggin Ice Center on the campus of Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. It runs from July 10th through the 15th and will showcase many of the best girls’ hockey players in the nation.

Last season, in 26 games, Rupp scored 12 goals and had 16 assists to lead the Lumberjacks with 28 points.

By — Charlie Yaeger