Wedding venue in Blue Ridge, GA for couples in Gainesville, FL

GAINESVILLE, Fla. — Reaching the fourth contest of its five-match road trip, the No. 10 Georgia women's tennis team remains undefeated in Southeastern Conference action after knocking off No. 18 Florida, 4-3, at the Alfred A. Ring Tennis Complex on Friday.

The victory extends the Bulldogs' (8-3, 3-0 SEC) winning streak to six matches, now going 2-0 against the Gators (5-7, 1-2 SEC) this season and winning the last eight meetings over Florida.

Georgia opened the scoring by earning the doubles point, marking its seventh consecutive match in which it has taken the doubles decision.

Fresh off of earning their first top 10 doubles ranking of the season, the No. 8 tandem of Aysegul Mert and Dasha Vidmanova made quick work of Qavia Lopez and Malwina Rowinska (Florida) en route to a 6-3 victory on court one.

Tight scores were held late on courts two and three, but the duo of Alexandra Vecic and Mell Reasco pulled through to defeat Carly Briggs and Rachel Gailis (Florida), 6-3, to secure the doubles point.

In singles, it was the back end of the lineup that led the way for the Bulldogs.

On court four, No. 98 Anastasiia Lopata was dominant from start to finish as she cruised past Alicia Dudeney (Florida), 6-1, 6-1.

Appearing in the lineup for a second-consecutive weekend on court five, Mert battled back from trailing in both sets to take a hard-fought 6-4, 6-4 win over Lopez (Florida).

With matches on courts 1-3 and six leveled at one set apiece, Guillermina Grant pulled off the clinching moment as she came back from a set down to defeat Rowinska (Florida) 3-6, 7-6, 6-1 on court six.

Despite the 4-0 score line securing the Bulldogs the victory, both sides opted to play the matches out resulting in wins for the Gators on courts 1-3.

Georgia will now wrap up the last of its five-match road trip where it will face No. 22 South Carolina on Sunday, Mar. 10 at 1 p.m. ET in Columbia, S.C. Both programs will compete against each other for the second time this season, as the Bulldogs previously knocked off the Gamecocks 4-1 in the ITA Kickoff Championship match on Jan. 27 to punch their ticket to the ITA DI Women's National Team Indoor Championships.

No. 10 GEORGIA vs No. 22 SOUTH CAROLINA Date: Sunday, Mar. 10 Time: 1 p.m. ET Location: Columbia, S.C. Venue: Carolina Tennis Center Live Scoring: https://gado.gs/bhr Live Video: https://gado.gs/bis

Singles Results No. 45 Rachel Gailis (Florida) def. No. 29 Dasha Vidmanova (UGA), 7-6, 4-6, 6-0 No. 80 Sara Dahlstrom (Florida) def. No. 25 Alexandra Vecic (UGA), 4-6, 6-4, 6-3 No. 79 Carly Briggs (Florida) def. No. 68 Mell Reasco (UGA), 6-7, 6-4, 6-2 No. 98 Anastasiia Lopata (UGA) def. Alicia Dudeney (Florida), 6-1, 6-1 Aysegul Mert (UGA) def. Qavia Lopez (Florida), 6-4, 6-4 Guillermina Grant (UGA) def. Malwina Rowinska (Florida), 3-6, 7-6, 6-1

Doubles Results No. 8 Aysegul Mert/Dasha Vidmanova (UGA) def. Qavia Lopez/Malwina Rowinska (UF), 6-2 No. 34 Guillermina Grant/Mai Nirundorn (UGA) vs Alicia Dudeney/Bente Spee (UF), 3-5 (unfinished) Mell Reasco/Alexandra Vecic (UGA) def. Carly Briggs/Rachel Gailis (UF), 6-3

Match Notes: No. 10 Georgia (8-3, 3-0 SEC) No. 18 Florida (5-7, 1-2 SEC) Order of finish: Doubles (1,3); Singles (4,5,6,3,1,2) Keep up with all the latest news and information on the Bulldogs by following UGA Women's Tennis on X @UGAWomensTennis, on Instagram @UGAWomensTennis, and on Facebook @GeorgiaWomensTennis or check out information online at GeorgiaDogs.com.

Sonic Drive-In announced it has started construction on a second store in Gainesville.

The new location will be at 6421 SW Archer Rd, near the Town Square Shopping Center near SW 63^rd Boulevard.

“This location will have 15 stalls and a drive-thru lane, plus a patio,” said Rachel Russell, a Brand PR specialist, in an email reply to Mainstreet.

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The projected opening date is this spring and Russell said the store is currently hiring, directing anyone interested in applying for a position to visit https://careers.sonicdrivein.com/us/en.

The other Sonic Drive-In in Gainesville is located at 2162 NW 39^th Avenue.

The restaurant is known for its retro theme with its drive-in concept and features a menu that includes hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and a popular customized beverage menu.

Sonic Drive-In announced it has started construction on a second store in Gainesville.

The new location will be at 6421 SW Archer Rd, near the Town Square Shopping Center near SW 63^rd Boulevard.

“This location will have 15 stalls and a drive-thru lane, plus a patio,” said Rachel Russell, a Brand PR specialist, in an email reply to Mainstreet.

Become A Member

Mainstreet does not have a paywall, but pavement-pounding journalism is not free. Join your neighbors who make this vital work possible.

See Member Benefits

The projected opening date is this spring and Russell said the store is currently hiring, directing anyone interested in applying for a position to visit https://careers.sonicdrivein.com/us/en.

The other Sonic Drive-In in Gainesville is located at 2162 NW 39^th Avenue.

The restaurant is known for its retro theme with its drive-in concept and features a menu that includes hamburgers, hot dogs, sandwiches and a popular customized beverage menu.

HCA Florida North Florida Hospital, which shut down surgeries abruptly last week over concerns about sterilized operative room equipment, is suspending all non-emergency surgeries for for another week as it grapples with issues that could lead to serious patient infections, surgeons said.

The surgical schedules at North Florida Hospital in Gainesville have fallen into chaos since its decision last week to suspend all elective procedures, according to surgeons inside the hospital who spoke on condition of anonymity because executives there have ordered all medical staff not to talk to reporters about the issue. Multiple surgeries were called off Friday.

The hospital is performing only a fraction of the number of surgeries it usually would, and some procedures were canceled with only hours’ notice, surgeons said. In recent days, three cardiac surgeries and four orthopedic surgeries were called off on the day of the operations, they said.

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North Florida Hospital — previously known as North Florida Regional Medical Center — is one of the largest hospitals in Florida with 510 beds and 15 operating rooms. It treats more than 50,000 patients each year and has more than 1,000 employees.

It is run by HCA Florida Healthcare. The company sent executives from its corporate offices to Gainesville to manage media inquiries and has ordered that no one in the hospital talk to reporters without approval, one surgeon and other hospital employees said.

In a statement, a spokeswoman, Lauren Lettelier, emphasized that the hospital has resumed some surgeries and was working to reschedule patients whose surgeries were postponed. She declined to answer questions about the numbers of surgeries that had been canceled since Jan. 17, numbers of affected patients or what percentage of surgeries were going forward.

The most important thing for people to know is that the hospital is doing its best to continue to care for the community, Lettelier said.

The hospital shut down surgeries last week amid concerns over the activities of the Sterile Processing Department, the unit in charge of cleaning and sanitizing instruments used for medical procedures. In statements last week, the hospital said the move was proactive and described it only as an unspecified “operational matter” and an “equipment-related issue that impacted presurgical processes.”

Instruments were found in operating rooms with blood and tissue residue from earlier surgeries, according to the surgeons and other medical staff. In one case, three different trays of equipment for a single cardiac operation were found to be compromised, and the hospital canceled the procedure with the patient still on the surgical bed.

It wasn’t clear whether or how many patients might have been infected by improper sterilization procedures discovered by the hospital. The unit responsible is supposed to clean surgical equipment by hand, wash it and sterilize it at high temperatures before storing equipment on trays that remain sealed until surgeons need them.

A patient scheduled for orthopedic surgery Jan. 19 said his operation was abruptly canceled and has been rescheduled twice for mid-February with no explanation. He also spoke on condition of anonymity due to concerns about upsetting hospital employees who would be operating on him in the future.

— This story was produced by Fresh Take Florida, a news service of the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications. The reporter can be reached at sandovalv@freshtakeflorida.com.

For about 30 minutes on Wednesday evening, The Swamp Restaurant found itself packed with people hoping to get a glimpse of its newest bartender: Kendall Jenner.

The model, television personality, businesswoman and social media influencer was in Gainesville as part of a promotional tour for her 818 Tequila brand, which she founded in 2021. Before her stop at The Swamp she visited The Social At Midtown.

Fans at The Swamp, 1104 SW Second Ave., were lined up as early as 1 p.m. to get a prime viewing spot. A steady stream of people trickled in throughout the afternoon. The inside bar was about 10-people deep at around 5 p.m. An outside area was blocked off with barricades where Jenner would also be handing out drinks.

Anny Smith, 21, and her friends found a strategic place near the back entrance of The Swamp where Jenner entered an exited the building. She said she grew up watching Jenner on "Keeping Up with the Kardashians," the reality show that helped rocket Jenner to fame.

"She definitely holds a lot of nostalgic memories for me, so I'm excited to see her in person," Smith said.

As Jenner's arrival neared, the crowd inside and out began chants of "Kendall" and "818." People outside got a quick glimpse of her before she slipped inside the restaurant. She made her way to the inside bar to the music of "Jaws" and "Go Gators."

Dozens of people at the back of the room stood on chairs with cellphones held high hoping to see the star.

As she moved outside, people began to fight through the crowd for position. The tables that were once full remained covered with plates of food and purses left behind. Jenner served shots, signed autographs and posed for pictures.

People standing outside of the restaurant's property who had not paid the required cover charge began sneaking in after a barricade was moved.

Gainesville was just one of many stops on Jenner's tour. On Tuesday she made appearances in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, and Athens, Georgia

Jenner, 28, the daughter of Kris Jenner and Caitlyn Jenner, was just 11 years old when "Keeping Up with the Kardashians" debuted on E! in 2007. The show also starred Jenner's famous sisters Kim Kardashian, Kourtney Kardashian, Khloe Kardashian and Kylie Jenner.

She launched her modeling career in 2009 at age 14, and has been ranked among the world's highest paid models by Forbes since 2017. Some of her biggest runway moments include shows for luxury brands Prada, Chanel, Dior, Versace and Dolce & Gabbana, among others.

An independent bookstore focused on writers of color, Florida and LGBTQ+ writers as well as books banned in the state will be opening in Gainesville early next year.

The bookstore, named The Lynx, is the brainchild of author Lauren Groff and her husband, Clay Kallman. The store, which is scheduled to open April 1, will span 2,300 square feet in the South Main Station area of downtown, and plans to specialize in titles by Florida and local authors as well as books banned in the state.

Writing has surrounded Groff since age 12, when she discovered Emily Dickinson’s poetry. Originally wanting to be a poet, she double majored in English and French literature, which gave her a strong background in world literature.

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“I think when you write a book, you're having a conversation with the long history of literature in the past and what's going on in the present as well,” she said. “It's just very beautiful to feel as though your voice is in that conversation with other peoples whom you love so much.”

The same could be said for Kallman. His grandfather, Irving Kallman, started what was once the Florida Book Store in 1933 when the University of Florida had an all-male population of just a couple thousand students.

The pair relocated to Gainesville, Kallman’s hometown, in 2006 for the stability of their family and for Kallman to take over his family’s business of student housing near the University of Florida.

After changes in Florida politics, book bans and limitations on teaching certain Florida and United States history, Groff said the two decided to open a bookstore to share banned books with the community and to make connections between different groups to expand the love of reading, literacy and literature.

“Instead of bemoaning it and feeling sad, we should probably lean into it and do something about the book bans and the diminished capacity to teach truth in history,” Groff said.

The Lynx

Inspired by other writers who own bookstores, such as Ann Patchett in Nashville and Emma Straub in New York City, Groff said independent bookstores and writers fit well together.

“We're producing the books and we're also incredible champions of the books,” she said about writers. “We're giant readers — we absolutely love literature. We're so thrilled to talk about it all day long.”

The bookstore’s name is significant, not only because the lynx is one of two native wildcats in Florida, but because they aspire for the store to “link” the community together.

“We want this to be a nexus for Gainesville — a place where disparate people and voices come together,” Groff said. “I've taken so much from Gainesville; I love Gainesville so deeply. I'm so happy, and so is Clay, to give back something and give back this sort of center — this voice for Gainesville.”

Passionate about representation in literature, Groff said she and Kallman believe freedom of knowledge and understanding in storytelling is important, as is keeping those books and ideas out in the world. Many currently banned books are LGBTQ+ books, and representing different ideas can create a richer, more culturally invested, diverse town that allows multiple voices and experiences to be shared, Groff said.

“I see, in a bookstore, as the beating heart of a town,” she said. “I would really, really love for this independent bookstore, in particular, to be a place that takes a stand against the ability of Floridians to have knowledge and understanding of the world that we live in.”

Groff hopes The Lynx will host many talks and readings with writers as well as collaborate with local businesses and organizations. Her nearly 15-year career in publishing has allowed her to meet many authors and Florida writers — Laura van den Berg, Dantiel W. Moniz, Jonathan Escoffery and Jeff VanderMeer, to name a few — which she hopes will participate in the bookstore’s events.

Groff has written multiple pieces related to Florida and Gainesville, and she aims to support a pride in Florida literature through The Lynx.

“I've drawn a lot of pleasure and enjoyment and inspiration from this place,” she said. “This very strange, swampy, mysterious, haunted, beautiful town.”

Groff said she supports Gainesville’s other independent bookstore, Third House Books, and has always wanted to have another bookstore in town.