Spring graduate Blake Perry made his mark in athletics and academics

“Scoring for your Yellowjackets … No. 19, Blake Perry.”

It was a phrase uttered dozens of times over the public address system at Yellowjacket men’s soccer home games over the past five seasons. Perry, a native of Anoka, Minnesota, who will be graduating from UW-Superior this May, finished his collegiate soccer career with 74 goals, a record for the Yellowjacket men’s soccer program. To put that mark in perspective, his total is 31 more than the next-closest scorer.

Perry’s exploits on the pitch garnered plenty of hardware that he’ll take with him – the 2018 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year Award, four All-UMAC First Team honors and the 2022 UMAC Player of the Year Award among them. He also became the first player in the history of Yellowjacket men’s soccer to be named All-American – receiving All-American Second Team honors from the United Soccer Coaches Association in 2022.

Soccer was the vehicle that brought Perry to UW-Superior in the fall of 2018.

“I saw how special the men’s soccer program was and the future Coach Mooney had in store for the team, and that was the main reason I chose to attend UW-Superior,” Perry said. “I also chose the school because the small class sizes make each class more personable.”

In addition to achieving high marks on the soccer field, Perry also got the job done in the classroom. A previous selection to the UMAC All-Academic Team, Perry will graduate from UW-Superior with a Bachelor of Science degree in accounting. And like his time with the soccer team, there are parts of campus life that left a lasting impression on him.

“I think one of my favorite things from my time at UW-Superior was the staff. The staff and professors here are very friendly and helpful,” Perry said. “That, and the long-lasting friendships. That’s probably the main thing I am going to take from my experience here. I made a lot great friends at UW-Superior and had a lot of fun with everyone in the Marcovich Wellness Center.

“There’s also the bond with the other student-athletes. One big surprise for me when I came to UW-Superior was how well all the sports teams and students came together at different athletic events to support each other.”

There’s no doubt Perry has left an indelible mark on UW-Superior, and the same can be said the other way, as well. UW-Superior has made its mark and helped prepare Perry for the next phase of his life.

“Being on the soccer team, we did a lot of work with Randy Barker (from the Pruitt Center for Mindfulness and Well-Being) and Zach Harwerth (another UW-Superior alumnus), working on the mental side of things,” Perry said. “Our sessions with them taught me a lot of great sports lessons, but they also taught even better life lessons and they are things I will take with me and use every day.”