Photo courtesy of WAC

You show up late to class, forgot to study for the quiz and have no pencil.

Thankfully, the girl sitting next to you has one you can borrow.

She seems nice, but all you know about her is she has extra pencils.

Little do you know she is a Division I athlete.

Tuesday will be the first opportunity for students to get to know coaches and athletes in an open question and answer session in the free speech area.

Starting at noon, women̢۪s golf coach Angie Cates will be there with sophomores Maria Pia Escandon and Whitney Yano.

Photo courtesy of WAC

“Overall this is a good opportunity to put our faces out there to the student body,â€Â Cates said. “I hope people will ask questions about the team and our season.â€Â

Director of Marketing for the athletics department, Sarah Teachey, said this is an opportunity for students to get to know coaches and players.

Prizes will also be offered for questions submitted online if the questions are used.

“This is to give students a chance to form a bond [with coaches and student-athletes] and see what’s going on,â€Â she said. “These are great people with stories to tell.â€Â

After the first 30 minutes with women̢۪s golf, men̢۪s basketball coach Steve Cleveland will answer questions with senior forwards Alex Blair and Hector Hernandez.

“We encourage people to come out and ask questions,â€Â Teachey said. “We have free tickets to upcoming events. We’ll be out there rain or shine.â€Â

Marketing intern Aaron Pisk, who came up with the idea, said this will be a good opportunity for students to take notice of coaches and fellow athletes.

“They have stories to tell just like everyone else, they are part of the school just like you are,â€Â he said. “They work hard on the court and in the classroom.â€Â

For the hour the coaches and athletes will be out there, students are encouraged to stop and ask questions.

Cates said there isn’t anything she won’t talk about.

Besides having the opportunity to win prizes, students get the opportunity to learn more about people who they normally wouldn̢۪t talk to, Teachey said.

“We have a home tournament at the end of February,” Cates said. “It would be cool for students to get to know our team, come support us.

“This is an opportunity to see athletes and create a relationship with them.â€Â