MaxPreps Weekly Honor Roll, presented by the United States Marine Corps: Serena Starks, Edison

Talk to Serena Starks for five minutes and it's quite apparent she embodies all the qualities of an Ivy League student.

She is intellectual. She is devoted to hitting the books hard. She has a vibrant personality. She is a well-rounded person. She'll be a great representation of the school.

Take a look at game film of Starks on the softball diamond and it's apparent she can play the sport at a Division I level.

Starks, who recently wrapped up her junior year at Edison (Huntington Beach, Calif.), will head to Princeton University in 2019.

Edison coach Melissa Roth knows Starks is going to be a difference-maker for the Tigers because of her work ethic, on and off the field.

"She's a great kid who works hard," Roth said. "Honestly, she's one of the most hard-working people I know and she's a great teammate. With all those qualities, you know you're going to get a good person that's not only a good athlete but a good person to your program."

Starks had only played varsity softball for one season when she started attracting college looks. Hitting over .400 as a sophomore really turned some heads, especially from Ivy League schools. Princeton, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn and Lehigh were all fast on her trail.

Starks verbally committed to Princeton last summer after the coaching staff loved how she plays the game.
"I think they really look at my offensive skills," Starks said. "My coach was really interested in how I was hitting and she'd always make comments about, ‘Oh, you did a really good job of getting on base today.' My speed was also a big aspect they really liked about me and my style of play."

The 17-year-old is a versatile player who has started in center field and shortstop for the last two years at Edison.

She has a knack for getting on base — racking up a.492 on-base percentage this season.

"I like to think of myself as kind of scrappy," Starks said. "Just kind of bunt here, maybe poke a ball in the five/six hole between the third baseman and the shortstop or do a hard slap or hit it to the fence. I like to do all those types of things to get on base however I can."

Starks had a slow start to the season after transitioning from soccer — which is the one other sport she plays. However, she continued to progress as the season wore on.

"I struggled a little bit at the beginning of the season, but I really took that struggle and it motivated me to work harder," Starks said. "I think I got the results that I wanted to at the end. I did really good toward the end of the season of getting on base a lot more and making more plays in the outfield and making more plays at shortstop. I think as the season went on, I progressively got better."

Starks played lights out in the California Interscholastic Federation playoffs. In two games, she was 6-for-7 with a walk and five stolen bases.

"I think she understands the importance of competition and she rises to the occasion, especially when the pressure's on," Roth said. "I think you see the best in her. I just think she's a true competitor."

For her great season on the diamond, Starks was named all-county second team. She was also tabbed all-Sunset League first team and team offensive Player of the Year, both for the second straight year.

During the summer, Starks is plenty busy on the diamond. She plays for Explosion Softball and logs about 100 games.

"It's really raised my level of play," said Starks about playing travel softball. "I definitely become a much better player. Just being all these amazing, talented girls, I like to ask them questions like, why do you do a certain thing? I like to pick their brains."

Starks is also coming off a solid season in soccer where she was an all-league second team selection. Playing two sports gives Starks the balance she desires.

But playing softball and soccer are certainly contrasting styles.

"I'd say that soccer is a lot more physical," Starks said. "Softball is 80-90 percent mental. But I also use my mental skills that I get from softball to help me in soccer."

Starks has been a two-year starter at center back/forward for her high school team. She also competes on the club circuit for Slammers FC.

For how solid Starks is as an athlete, her resume in the classroom and community is equality as impressive.

Starks, who took four advanced courses in her final semester this year, holds a 4.3 weighed grade point average. She's a member of National Honor Society, Key Club, Model United Nations and a community service club called Kiwanis.

"She involved in the community. She cares about the community," Roth said. "She cares about people at the school. It's not all about softball for her, but it's a bigger picture."

Next year as a senior, Starks will be the co-president of Best Buddies. It's a club that helps special needs students at Edison. Every Friday, club members eat lunch with special needs kids.

"It's honestly been a life-changing experience for me," Starks said. "It's one of the reasons why I'm so interested in our SAC (Special Abilities Cluster) program. I really look forward to having lunch with him every Friday."

Through SAC, Starks hosted an event called Surf-A-Rama where about 40 special needs students went to the beach and got a chance to swim.

Starks even started her own organization: Team Players. It was created to host athletic events for students with special needs. Last year, she was able to get special needs kids to be bat boys for a softball game.

"It's really neat to watch how it's developed and how many kids are participating in my organization," said Starks, who volunteers about seven to 10 hours per month.

Because of her good deeds throughout her school and around the community, Starks was honored by Edison with a Character Counts Award. Teachers in the school pick or two students each year who display strong character, responsibility, service and kindness. Starks embodies all those qualities.

Roth said watching Starks help special needs students really shows what kind of character the teenager has.