Katie Perret has dyed her hair three times since pre-season. The defending Big Ten champion on the uneven bars and natural brunette believes change is good though, even if that means dying her hair purple.

"I'm just messing around while I can," Perret said. "I think I might go back to blond next, maybe blond and purple. Who knows?"

Who knew that Perret would become well known at Penn State for her bar routines, and that by her sophomore year, would have already established a signature move of her own, which, in the realm of competitive gymnastics, is a difficult and rare task.

Her move, "The Perret," named accordingly, is just a small but important link in the chain that has allowed her to win weekly. Already this season, she has two beam titles and four uneven bar titles.

"I was just messing around in the gym one day when I was on my club team in high school," Perret said of her move. "My [club] coach said it would be cool if I did this certain move, so I tried it a couple times, competed and the rest is history."

In 2004, Perret got a taste of Olympic level competition when she competed in the Junior Olympic Nationals. Not only did she take the title in the bars, but she also placed second in the all-around and the beam. She competed in all four events in high school and did so until her freshman year in college when she was forced to get surgery last spring. She had eight bone chips that needed cleaning before she could continue competing.

"A lot of years of pounding finally caught up to me. It was just a long time coming," Perret said.

At the age of 5, Perret began competing in Colorado Springs, Colo., and grew up with the same coaches her whole pre-collegiate career. As she became an important part of her club team in high school, collegiate competition seemed out of the question for her future plans. Perret was in an Athens state of mind.

"I never really wanted to compete in college. I was aiming for the 2004 Olympics," Perret said.

Since Penn State coach Steve Shephard originally recruited Perret because of her strong and solid gymnastics background, he has faith that she will do the best she can to reach the point where she was before surgery. He already believes that she has made a substantial amount of progress since last spring.

"As a former elite, [Katie] knows what it's like to work hard," Shephard said. "She's worked through many injuries even when she shouldn't have. She's very tough minded."

"She may never be like she was when she was 13 or 14 because of the wear and tear of surgery. I think she's at about 90 percent right now, which is pretty good for how many years she's been doing gymnastics."

While she is improving in the beam in meets and practices, she hopes to get back into the floor exercise lineup and eventually in the all-around before Big Tens, which are in late March. Perret said that although she is getting used to the idea of floor competition again, it is still a slow process.

Along with Perret's individual goals of being two-time Big-Ten champion on the uneven bars and possibly in the beam, she has goals for her team and other teammates as well. With its winning streak of five meets, the Lions keep getting one step closer to the Big Ten team crown and qualifying for NCAAs. However, Perret still believes that the team has not found its "groove" yet, something only time and practice can help discover. Being a freshman last year has helped her understand why.

"It's a weird transition for freshmen because all our lives we compete as individuals and then we get to college and have to become one as a team," she said. "It's just hard to get used to."

Some of the freshmen consider Perret a role model in and outside the gym. Teammates have said that her leadership skills and humor help motivate the team.

"She brings so much positive energy to the team and practice everyday," freshman Allie Southard said. "She's always there to help motivate everyone and always knows how to make you laugh no matter what."

Shephard and the upperclassmen even believe that Perret's unique personality brings something positive and different to the team. Junior Aslynn Satterfield said she thinks that she helps make practice and team activities outside the gym more fun.

"She's brings her quirkiness in and outside the gym," Satterfield said. "She's crazy in a good way sometimes, but it makes things fun and it makes her fun to hang out with."

With her background, progression in the all-around, a Big Ten title in the books, and impressive performances this season, Perret's future looks bright. However, among all the serious goals, she said she wants to make sure she has fun while she still can.

"Change is cool. It makes life fun," Perret said. "I'm kind of out there, but it's fine with me."