Being the lone senior on any team is a tall order, but that was the load Starr Robertson shouldered this past season for the Ware County High girls’ soccer team. And despite their relative youth, the Lady Gators took their state playoff chase down to the wire. Effingham County ultimately denied WCHS a chance at the postseason; the Lady Gators finished 7-7-1 overall and 5-5 in Region 1-AAAAA.
“I was the only senior this year, and I really pushed myself to inspire the other players to put their hearts into it,” said Robertson, the daughter of Annie Robertson (Charlie) and Terrence Freeman. “Put your all into it and you’ll get good results. Soccer is not just a sport; it’s a passion.”
Replacing Robertson will be no small task. The striker/midfielder averaged 22.3 goals per season during a four-year career, finding the back of the net 89 times. Desiring to remain close to family, Robertson declined several out-of-state college offers in favor of competing collegiately at ABAC beginning next year.
“Starr is the most disciplined soccer player to come through our program,” said Ware County High girls’ coach Michael Cook. “She constantly improved her game by doing the work during the season and the offseason. People always comment that our future is bright because we are only losing one senior this year; but when they find out who we are losing, they normally retract their statement.”
Robertson is also a rare academic find, having held membership in Beta Club and National Honor Society. She scored 1560 on the SAT and 21 on the ACT. The owner of a 3.95 GPA, she cites science as her favorite subject and credits her biology instructor, Mrs. Lee Hatfield, with lighting the fire of interest.
“Two years ago I started liking science when I took an AP biology class,” Robertson said. “I probably had the greatest teacher of all time in Mrs. Hatfield. She has so many different ways she teaches it; not just with book work. It was not long and drawn out; we always had something visual, like pictures of cells. Biology just clicked, and now I plan to major in it in college.”
According to Hatfield, theirs is mutual admiration.
“Starr is as dedicated in the classroom as she is on the field and I’m sure she will be successful in anything she pursues,” Mrs. Hatfield said. “She was a joy to teach and coach. We will miss her next year.”
Although Robertson took up soccer at age 6, she wasn’t exactly a prodigy. In order to get playing time, she had to play up against tougher competition.
“It actually started at Williams Heights Elementary School in PE,” Robertson said. “It was the first day of soccer, and I was the goalkeeper. I was probably the worst goalkeeper of all time. I ran into the post and almost broke my nose. After that, I would play with the boys every day because it was more of a challenge. I played midfield my first year, and from then on I played striker.”
Through the years, Robertson toiled in other sports. She played basketball at Waycross Middle School, where she was a point guard. As a high school freshman, she placed fifth in the region cross country meet, which qualified her for the state meet. Her knees took a pounding from the rigors of cross country, and Robertson chose not to compete the following year. She returned to running road courses as a junior.
“I figured taking a year off, it would help with soccer,” she said. “It did help a lot with endurance, playing time and whatnot.”
Nothing, though, replaced the thrill that soccer provides. On the pitch, Robertson patterns herself after USA women’s great Abby Wambach.
“She’s determined and very self-driven,” Robertson said. “I especially liked last year’s World Cup when she scored on a header.”
When it comes to game execution, Robertson’s own favorite soccer maneuver is the “Ronaldo Chop,” so named for the famed Portuguese national star that suits up for Real Madrid.
“If I’m running down the sideline and I have a defender at an angle to my left, I’m going to step over the ball, and then I’m going to chop it behind my leg with my right foot,” she said. “If the defender is jockeying back, it opens the field and I have more room to play the ball across the field.”
This season brought one of Robertson’s favorite personal highlights. It happened against Glynn Academy at home with the game tied 1-1 and six minutes to go.
“Sarah Hitt was throwing the ball in, and she was about 10 yards from the 18-yard box,” Robertson said. “I didn’t expect to score in that situation, because I usually don’t. But Sarah threw it in and landed right in front of a defender, so I flicked it over her head with my foot and scored. We won, 2-1.”
Coach Cook has been instrumental in Robertson’s development as a player, says the striker.
“I didn’t know anything about reading the game until my ninth-grade year,” she said. “I had the speed and the touch, but didn’t know where to go with the ball. He took me through drills that helped me read the game in a different way.”
Since then, Robertson has found ways to give back to others, and not just in soccer. She has assisted with instructing U-11 players from the Golden Isles Soccer Association. She also sought at one point to mold her younger sister, Adilania, into a soccer player. A third-grader at Williams Heights, Adilania quickly dismissed soccer in favor of running.
“She got out there for five minutes and complained it was too hot,” the elder sister said with a laugh. “Now she is getting into track. She is really tall and extremely fast.”
Robertson says her interest in science is also born of a desire to be a healer. Her service projects have included work at area nursing homes.
“I’d like to be a researcher,” she said. “My mom has rheumatoid arthritis, so I want to find something that would help it and help others.”
As she develops her bedside manner, Robertson is already noted for ‘pet-side’ manner, having worked as a volunteer with the humane society and at Satilla Animal Hospital. In fact, one of the loves in her life is the family’s three-year-old canine, a Chorkie named Big Papa.
“I guess I’m just better with animals than with people,” she said.
For now, though, Robertson remains as passionate about soccer as she does anything, and her enthusiasm isn’t fading anytime soon.
“I feel like it’s so much more complex than other sports,” she said. “It’s all about body language, reading the field, anticipation, and constant running. You are never just in one position; I just love how competitive it is.”
Southeast/Academic Athlete/May, 2016
Starr Robertson
Ware County High School
Waycross, Georgia
Story by John DuPont
Photos by Jennifer Carter Johnson
Salient Senior
