Freshmen aren’t supposed to be leaders. They aren’t supposed to lead the team in scoring or be a critical component to the team’s success. But Jamie Perry breaks the stereotype of a typical freshman.

Perry has been instant-offense for the Saint Louis University women’s soccer team this season. She leads the team with 11 points on five goals and one assist and has started every game. But Perry brings much more to the team than just raw numbers.

“She’s consistent every game. She’s helping to lead the team,” said coach Tim Champion. “She is creating chances for herself and uses her speed and skill to beat defenders. She’s had an impact up top. That was the one thing that we needed.”

Perry’s success should be no surprise. She scored 107 goals in her career and added 59 assists at Rockwood Summit High School in Fenton, Mo.

Perry helped lead Summit to conference, district and sectional championships during her senior year. Summit also reached the state finals that season. Perry was named to the All-Conference first team for four years.

Perry noticed the subtle, but important, differences immediately.

“Soccer here is much more intense. The pace is faster,” Perry said. “The talent level is different. At Summit, we worked together and were close, but there wasn’t as much talent as people think. We worked well together. Here, we’re just so deep. We have so much talent.”

Champion knew what he was getting when he recruited and signed Perry.

“I knew that she would score a lot in college,” Champion said. “We brought her in as a goal scorer and a striker. She has a knack for getting shots off in tight spaces.”

For all her successes, Perry almost never made it to SLU.

“I had committed to Mizzou,” Perry said. “But my roommate, Tressa Pecher, convinced me to come here. We played on the Busch team and she called me and got me to change me mind. It was the best decision that I ever made.”

Champion knew that Perry could make an immediate impact. But even his expectations have been surpassed.

“I knew that she would have a great chance to start, but I figured that it would take a few weeks to break the starting lineup,” Champion said. “But she came in during preseason and won her spot.”

But Perry has even surpassed her coach’s expectations.

“I thought that it would take her a lot longer to adjust to the level of play,” Champion said. “Most young players have a problem adjusting to the physical play in college. I thought that it would take her a lot longer to adjust. But she’s been a physical player from the beginning.”

Perry has utilized her overall athleticism to frustrate her opposition in every contest. She is second in Conference USA in points scored with seven points.

Perry is tied for fifth in goals with three and leads the league in game-winning goals. She also leads the league with three game-winning goals. Perry’s three game-winners also lead the team.

The scary thing about Perry is that she hasn’t reached her most productive point.

“Jamie and Jenny Kehl are at a point where they’re starting to work well together,” said Champion. “Jamie is getting better at being a target and holding people off the ball.”

“Hopefully, we can get better at our quick passing,” Perry said. “With Kehl back up top, we can build on what we had earlier this year.”

Even though she’s a freshman, Perry knows the ultimate point of the game.

“We all work together,” Perry said. “We play for each other-I play for you. You play for me.”