Decatur, Columbia among girls squads in action

Anyone trying to put his/her finger on perhaps the state’s most overlooked player should take a gander at Decatur’s Jordan Dillard. In the Bulldogs’ second-round win over Sonoraville, Dillard scored 34 points, nearly double her season average as Decatur advanced to the quarterfinals. Dillard has been a standout all season long but has been overlooked by many as Decatur competes in the same classification as Buford, St. Pius X and Washington County. With only eight teams left in the AAA bracket, Dillard is without question the most exciting player remaining and is worth watching tonight against Dawson County. … Despite sporting a 24-3 record and a Region 6-AAAA title, defending Class AAA champion Columbia will visit Region 7-AAAA champion River Ridge tonight for the right to continue its quest for a third title in four years. Miah Spencer, who is headed to N.C. State, filled up the stat sheet in Columbia’s second-round win over LaGrange, scoring 19 points, grabbing four rebounds and a pair of steals. Columbia also won the 2010 and fell to eventual champion Washington County in the 2011 semifinals. … Michael House’s Alpharetta Raiders will see an incredible foe in North Gwinnett, led by Lexie Brown (23 points in a win over Archer), Peyton Whitted (11 points, nine rebounds) and Joshlyn Belcher (17 points, four rebounds). The Raiders, though, can counter with some firepower of their own, including Kylee Smith (25 points, 14 rebounds against Central Gwinnett in a second-round win) and Lauren Brown. Smith has helped the Raiders dominate the boards and generate transition to find easy baskets on the offensive end according to House. Not many teams can match points with North Gwinnett, but Alpharetta’s Smith, who is headed to Vanderbilt, is a warrior that is after some revenge from a loss to North Gwinnett earlier this season. … Defending Class AA champions Lovett proved it could win without a major contribution from Sydney Umeri. The future Virginia Cavalier was held to just six points by Rabun County but Te’Erica Eason and Julia Selman picked up the slack in the victory. Selman was hot from the outside and could be what Lovett needs to get past a loaded Kendrick team looking to march all the way to Macon. … Finally, Wesleyan will hit the road to face Region 7-AA champion Calhoun. The Yellow Jackets earned the home game thanks to a GHSA decision, but Wesleyan has lost just once to a team from the state of Georgia and has five players who will go on to play basketball at the next level. Future Auburn Tiger Katie Frerking is a multi-sport athlete who notched career point No. 1,000 Friday in just her third year of varsity. She missed her freshman year with a leg injury.