April 13, 2015

COLUMBIA, S.C. – South Carolina senior Aleighsa Welch is among 12 prospects invited to attend the WNBA Draft 2015 presented by State Farm on Thu., April 16, at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn. ESPN2 will televise the first round beginning at 7 p.m. ET, and ESPN3 will air the second and third rounds starting at 8 p.m. ET.

Welch completed her career at South Carolina as the program’s top career offensive rebounder and one of just four Gamecocks all-time to record at least 1,000 points and 900 rebounds in her career. She is a three-time All-SEC selection, including first-team honors in 2014 and 2015, and was the 2015 SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Her career .577 field goal percentage is second in school history. In her senior season, Welch turned in 9.1 points and 6.5 rebounds per game, helping propel the Gamecocks into the program’s first NCAA Final Four as well as a 12-week stint as the No. 1 team in the nation, a second-straight SEC regular-season championship and the South Carolina’s first SEC Tournament title.

Other attendees will be guards Brittany Boyd (California), Brittany Hrynko (DePaul), Samantha Logic (Iowa) and Jewell Loyd (Notre Dame); forwards Reshanda Gray (California), Dearica Hamby (Wake Forest) and Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (Connecticut); and centers Isabelle Harrison (Tennessee), Kiah Stokes (Connecticut), Elizabeth Williams (Duke) and Amanda Zahui B. (Minnesota).

The Seattle Storm holds the top pick in the draft for the third time in franchise history after winning the WNBA Draft Lottery presented by State Farm. The rest of the top five includes the Tulsa Shock (second pick), Seattle (third, from the Connecticut Sun), Connecticut (fourth, from the New York Liberty) and the Chicago Sky (fifth).