ATHENS --- Arieal Johnson and Ronika Ransford signed letters of intent to play collegiate basketball for the Georgia Lady Bulldogs on Wednesday, head coach Andy Landers announced.

Johnson, a 6-5, forward, is a native of Havelock, N.C., who has played the past three seasons at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia. She's ranked as the nation's No. 18 post prospect by both the All-Star Girls Report and Hoopgurlz.

"Arieal is going to give us the size that we're needing inside," Landers said. "If you drew up a player from a physique standpoint, you'd draw a picture of Arieal. She's got great size, great length and a great body type. She runs extremely well and can score it from inside and out to 15 feet. She's a very, very good player who's only going to get better."

A year ago, Johnson averaged 10 points, 12 rebounds and four blocks per game in her second season at Oak Hill.

"I couldn't be more excited that Arieal is headed to the University of Georgia," said Oak Hill coach Mike Rodgers. "I'm so pleased she selected Georgia because it's a great program and Coach Landers has such a reputation for developing players. I know she's going to continue to develop in a big way at Georgia. Arieal made the decision three years ago to come here and to be away from home and be a part of our program. I'm so grateful that it has turned out this way for her. She's played herself into this situation. She made a lot of sacrifices. It's not easy to go away from home and leave your friends and be at a boarding school. Arieal deserves this measure of success. She's certainly earned it."

Ransford, a 5-7, guard from Washington, D.C., is ranked as high as No. 11 overall nationally and is listed among the nation's top-35 prospects by five different recruiting services. She is ranked No. 11 by Peach State Hoops, No. 13 by Blue Star, No. 16 by the All-Star Girls Report, No. 21 by Hoopgurlz and No. 34 by the Collegiate Girls Basketball Report.

"Ronika is a multi-talented and an extremely athletic guard who can play both the '1' and the '2,'" Landers said. "She can score and penetrate and guard you. She has a great, great future ahead of her. She has extreme quickness and explosiveness. She's just an outstanding player."

Ransford has led H.D. Woodson High to three straight city championships. She was named MVP of the city finals as a freshman after scoring 31 points in the championship game, averaged 17.1 points as a sophomore and scored 19 second-half points in the 2009 city title tilt.

"I'm just glad I had the opportunity to work with Ronika," Woodson coach Frank Oliver said. "I can't say enough good things about her. She's one of those players who comes along once in a blue moon. She's not only gifted athletically, she's gifted intellectually. She has a very high basketball IQ. It's not very common to have a player who can think the game and have the physical abilities to take over a game as well. Ronika is that player. That's from the heart. It's been a joy to work with her. It's definitely going to be exciting to watch her play at Georgia over the next four years. She's going to give you plenty of highlight clips and plenty of wins. There's no limitations to what she can do."

Johnson and Ransford continue a recruiting resurgence for Lady Bulldog Basketball. This year's incoming class featured four freshmen – Anne Marie Armstrong, Jasmine Hassell, Jasmine James and Tamika Willis – who were ranked among the nation's top-50 prospects by various recruiting services. They headlined a group that was listed among the top-five recruiting classes in the nation.