Meghan Trewhella Filled With Gratitude During “Once in a Lifetime” USA Division III Brazil Tour

THE MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN stretches endlessly towards the horizon and blends majestically with the vast waters of the South Atlantic Ocean.

Boats dot Rio de Janeiro, Brazil’s sparkling Guanabara Bay below, specks in the shadow of the dome-shaped Sugarloaf Mountain. Its world-renowned coastal beaches curve along the shoreline in a C-shape.

Across the bay, dense grids of buildings and streets line the sprawling landscape that edges around Corcovado — a peak rising nearly a half mile above the city skyline.

At its top, “Hunchback” (the Portuguese word for Corcovado) supports an erect and monolithic concrete statue of Christ the Redeemer — its arms outstretched 92 feet serving as a symbol of the city’s welcoming spirit and Christian faith.

Standing at the base of one of seven modern Wonders of the World is Meghan Trewhella, who is admiring the snapshot that truly encapsulates Rio’s “Marvelous City” moniker.

Trewhella is a marvelous athlete herself, having been selected to represent Albion in a USA Division III Brazil basketball tour through USA Sports Tours & Events. Last season, the rising senior became the fourth Briton to win MIAA Most Valuable Player honors and was also named to the D3hoops.com all-region first team.

It is her last full day in the country, and she is filled with gratitude.

“It was just such a cool moment seeing all of Rio,” Trewhella said. “I was definitely grateful for being able to have the opportunity that some people don't.”

Trewhella was first informed of the tour in April after Ron Smith, the tour’s organizer, emailed Albion head women’s basketball coach Doreen Carden with Trewhella’s invitation. Smith had identified Division III’s most talented players — mainly conference player of the years, all-region or All-American selections — who were returning to play the following season. 

This marked the 16th year USA Sports Tours & Events had taken USA select Division III teams to play in Brazil. Over 900 players from more than 200 different Division III institutions previously competed in the event. Two teams (Red and Blue) consisting of eight players each were slated to play four games, with Trewhella being on the Red squad.

Trewhella was also invited to play in a similar USA tour in Italy, but she felt a deeper connection with the one playing in Brazil.

“You could tell [Smith] put some research into me and congratulated me on my accomplishments [in the email invitation],” Trewhella said. “So, I looked a little more into it and found out who [Smith] was and the experience, and I really wanted to go. He even said, ‘you’re going to play with the best D3 players,’ so I knew I would be playing with competitive people. I was also excited at the idea of playing another country, and my family was like, ‘you should go. It’s a once in a lifetime experience.’”

After obtaining a passport and a visa during the following months leading up to the trip, Trewhella and her sister, Maryellen Pietila, embarked on the 10-day excursion flying from Pietila’s home in Minneapolis, Minn., to Orlando, Fla., where both teams checked in and picked up their gear. From Orlando, they flew to São Paulo, Brazil and arrived the morning of August 5. 

They then traveled 40 miles northwest to Jundiai, a city of roughly 500,000 people, where their team hotel was stationed. Both squads had games that night in Atibaia, east of Jundiai, and Trewhella’s Red squad beat the host city’s team by almost 40 points.

From the get-go, Trewhella clicked with her teammates despite having no practice time as a group.

“We just had 20 minutes of warm up, and that was it,” Trewhella said. “Our coach [Drury’s Leo Gomes] was really good and kept it simple. “We did a lot of running on the floor, and our point guard just kept pushing and throwing the ball up to us. We tired out all the teams we played. It was obvious.”

The following day, Trewhella and the Red team defeated Campinas in Atibaia — another nearby local squad — and defeated them by nearly the same margin as the previous night. Both local teams had players who were roughly the same ages as Trewhella and her teammates.

Friday featured a flight from São Paulo to Rio de Janeiro, where the squads would remain for the rest of their trip. It was a day off from competition, so they took in those world-famous Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. The team hotel was right on Copacabana Beach bustling with vibrance and activity. For dinner, they partook in traditional Brazilian barbecue before experiencing Copacabana Beach’s night market filled with clothing, souvenirs and local art and jewelry.

On Saturday, both Red and Blue teams played the Rio All Stars — a group of current and former professional players from Brazil. Some even played college basketball in the United States. Trewhella and the Red squad won by roughly 20 points.

Since the game was in the evening, Trewhella and Pietila had a chance to check out the beaches for a longer period. They rode electric scooters to different spots and even hiked up an area that overlooked both Copacabana and Ipanema beaches. Later, they went hang gliding near Sugarloaf Mountain.

More sightseeing occurred on Sunday, as it was Brazil’s Father’s Day and no basketball games were played. The teams went up Sugarloaf and visited the famous Ipanema International Market with more items for sale representing the local flare.

Later in the evening, they attended a Flamengo soccer game — one of Brazil’s top professional club teams — at the iconic Maracanã Stadium.

Monday was highlighted by a team visit to the Lapa Steps in Rio de Janeiro’s Lapa neighborhood — 215 steps carefully crafted with over 2,000 colorful pieces of ceramic tile. A Chilean artist revitalized the dilapidated steps in 1990, and they have been featured in various worldwide pop culture scenes. Afterwards, a visit to the Centro Market in downtown Rio de Janeiro ensued followed by individual free time.

Tuesday was the final day of the tour, starting with the visit to Christ the Redeemer. Trewhella and the Red team played their last game in the Mangueira neighborhood against one of Brazil’s most historic women’s basketball clubs beating them by over 70 points.

After each of their contests throughout the tour, Trewhella noticed a common theme — how much the local Brazilian community gravitated towards them.

Following the game against the Rio All Stars, children speaking the native Portuguese approached the players wanting pictures and items such as their shirts — which Trewhella did not hesitate to give.

“I thought it was such a special moment,” Trewhella said. “It's just like the small things they were so excited about. They kept coming to us and trying to ask us questions in English. They were so excited to see us, and they thought we were so cool.”

Trewhella gave four of her shirts away following their last game and even her game-used water bottle. 

“They were all trying to grab [the water bottle], and I was like, ‘I used it. I feel like it’s kind of dirty,’ but they still really wanted it. [Maryellen] even gave them a shirt, and the girl she gave it to just hugged her. Things from the U.S. are so cool to them, but they also need these items to survive because they don’t have as many material things.”

Trewhella described this scene as her favorite and what she learned the most from the entire trip.

“I was very grateful to experience what other people’s lives were like and thankful for the life I have in the U.S.,” Trewhella said. “Any day, one of them would want to switch and take our spot here. That made me very grateful for even just my family and the people I surround myself with and being able to play college basketball because some people don't have the opportunity.”

A simple yet marvelous way to encounter gratitude.