North Dakota State Reps attend official State Qualifier tournaments to award Golden Ticket invites to the top two finishing teams at each grade and to answer any questions from coaches and families.  Please say "hello" when you see them!

Melissa Bakke
Melissa, proudly representing Grand Forks, serves as the Marketing and Communications Manager for Grand Forks Public Schools. Deeply rooted in the local basketball community, she’s an active member of the Grand Forks Fast Break Club — a perfect fit for a family where basketball isn’t just a sport, it’s a lifestyle. Her husband has spent over 12 years coaching high school basketball and leading travel teams, while their three children — ages 11, 6, and 5 — are year-round athletes. The Bakke kids play on travel teams, participate in Fast Break programs and camps, and can often be found honing their skills at Shoot360 on a daily basis. In the Bakke household, basketball isn’t just a game — it’s a shared passion that connects every member of the family.

Jennifer Kruger
Jennifer Kruger is from Alexandria, LA, but now lives in Moorhead. She played basketball starting in elementary through high school and into college and loved the game then and still loves it today. Jennifer now gets to play basketball with her grandsons.

Being active has always been very important to Jennifer. She is a Personal Trainer, a Nutritionist, a Group Fitness Instructor, and a Health and Wellness Coach. She trains clients to help them live a healthier and more active lifestyle.

Amanda Lee
Amanda Lee enters her second season working as a State Basketball Representative. She works for the state of Minnesota as a driver examiner full time and is also going to college online to get my Associates in Business. Amanda likes to spend her free time watching sports, hanging out with my dogs -- Apollo, who is a English Mastiff, and Otis, who is a Boxer. She has two nieces and one who is just starting to do sports camps and is showing interest in basketball. A true Minnesota sports fan, Amanda knows the ultimate disappointments but that doesn’t shy her away from cheering loud! 

She has loved basketball ever since watching her older brother play at camps and hasn’t looked back since. A basketball player herself until the 10th grade, she then became a student manager and helped with practices and gamedays. Amanda loves watching basketball no matter what age so seeing these young kids working together and finding the love in the game makes her day. She can’t wait to meet all of you!