Reyna Welsch of the Colorado College women's basketball program will join the USA D-3 Basketball Blue Team on a ten day international tour in Brazil, ahead of the 2026-27 academic year.
Announced by USA Sports Tours and Events, two teams will travel to Brazil and compete from August 4-13. The Blue Team is made up of eight players representing seven different institutions and coming from six different home states. The Red Team, which is also comprised of eight players, represents six different institutions and six different home states.
"This is an outstanding group of young women," says Ron Smith of USA Sports Tours and Events. "Many of the players on this year's USA D-3 Basketball Team – Brazil Tour had outstanding individual seasons and led their teams into postseason play. This tour is designed to expose players to a great international Basketball experience while providing a once in a lifetime opportunity for educational, cultural, and social growth."
The teams will begin with orientation in Orlando, Fla. on Tuesday, August 4, before they depart for Sao Paulo, Brazil. The teams will play doubleheaders in the cities and clubs they play in. On Saturday, August 8, the teams will fly to Rio de Janeiro, then play on additional game each.
In Brazil the team will experience educational, cultural, and social aspects of Brazilian life through city, school, and sports club visits. In Sao Paulo the teams will be staying in the city, which is the second largest city in the western hemisphere. In Rio de Janeiro the teams will be staying on the world famous Copacabana Beach (location for the 2016 Rio Olympic Beach Volleyball Tournament) and touring the Christ the Redeemer Statue and Sugar Loaf Mountain, two of the most recognizable landmarks in the world. The teams will visit the popular international market in Ipanema and Ipanema Beach.
"Rayna's selection to the USA D-3 Tours and Events 2026 team is well-deserved and will be an amazing developmental experience for her and the rest of her teammates," said CC Head Women's Basketball Coach Katherine Menendez. "She is team-first always, incredibly skilled, and a true competitor who brings her best at every turn. Rayna will represent Colorado College, her home state, and USA D-3 Basketball beautifully. I'm excited for her to gain international basketball experience as well as for her to have the opportunity to play with so many other accomplished student-athletes."
Welsch is coming off a standout freshman season with the Tigers which earned her the SCAC First-Year Player of the Year honor, and a selection to the SCAC All-Freshman Team.
USA D-3 Basketball Blue Team: Head Coach, Wes Sullivan (Hendrix College)
Addisyn Banks Shenandoah Univeristy
Jacqueline Berry Hardin-Simmons University
Riley Brady Hendrix College
MaeSyn Gay Hardin-Simmons University
Teagan McIlroy University of Redlands
Erin Porter Randolph-Macon College
Livy Sauvageau Trinity University (TX)
Rayna Welsch Colorado College
