Feb. 24, 2020

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VOLUME 114 ISSUE 63

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 Published by Campus Communications, Inc. of Gainesville, Florida

Not officially associated with the University of Florida

BASEBALL

WORKER’S RALLY

Barco shines in sweep of UM

By Bryan Matamoros Sports Writer

Lily Strickland // Alligator Staff

Anton Kernohan, a 20-year-old political science and sustainability sophomore, chants as protesters walk from Plaza of the Americas to the front entrance of Tigert Hall Friday. They protested working conditions for Armark employees. Read the story on pg. 6.

Hunter Barco was dealing throughout the early stages of Sunday afternoon’s showdown between Florida and Miami.

He had allowed zero hits in his first three scoreless innings, displaying his arsenal of pitches for the sold-out crowd at Mark Light Field in Coral Gables, Florida.

The freshman left-hander, however, started to lose command in the bottom of the fourth.

After walking the first batter of the inning and giving up a single to UM catcher Adrian Del Castillo, coach Kevin O’Sullivan and catcher Nathan Hickey approached the mound.

The decision was made to keep Barco in the game, but the Hurricanes scored their first run of the contest off a sacrifice fly from Raymond Gil in the subsequent at-bat to cut UF’s lead to two.

O’Sullivan made his way back to the mound in the fifth inning with his team up by three runs, as Barco found himself in a bases-loaded jam.

But O’Sullivan stuck with his fresh-

SEE BASEBALL, PAGE 12

UF employee accused of UF to close parking lot near Reitz Union sharing child porn THE LOT WILL CLOSE IN DECEMBER

HE’S ACCUSED OF USING UF’S WI-FI NETWORK TO SHARE THE PHOTOS

By Samia Lagmis, Alex De Luca Alligator Staff Writer

A UF employee was behind bars after a child pornography investigation led authorities to campus Wi-Fi. Authorities executed a search warrant Thursday at 26-yearold Timothy Turner’s home near Gainesville High School. He lives with his wife and two other roommates, according to the

Gainesville Police Department arrest report.

Turner has been a data entry specialist with UF’s family nutrition program since 2016, according to his LinkedIn. The National Center for Missing and Exploited Children received a tip in September 2019 that a user on Discord, a chat app for gamers, shared three sexually exploitative images of children, according to the report. An investigation traced the IP address of the user back to Turner.

Turner is accused of using UF’s Wi-Fi network on campus to “do some of the deeds that

Gators down Razorbacks at home SPORTS/SPECIAL/CUTOUT Story description finish with comma, pg# behind Smith’s big night

UF guard Kiara Smith scored a season-high 26 points in the win over No. 22 Arkansas, pg. 11

SEE CHILD, PAGE 4

By Noah Ram

Alligator Staff Writer

UF can stand to lose hundreds more parking spots by the end of the year, thanks to a building that’ll take its place.

The surface parking lot at the corner of Museum Road and Center Drive across the street from the Reitz Union will close by the end of 2020, according to UF Transportation and Parking Services’ current master plan.

A new UF data science and information technology building will open on that site in November 2022, according to the UF Land Use and Facilities Planning Committee.

The surface lot, which is an orange faculty decal lot, has 350 spaces.

Linda Dixon, the director of campus planning, wrote in an email this location was chosen because the new building’s tenants will come from the UF health colleges to the

‘Stayin’ Alive’

More than 300 students received CPR training, pg. 7

south and the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering to the north.

There are no immediate plans for the lot across the street at the southeast corner of Museum Road and Center Drive next to Frazier Rogers Hall, Dixon said.

However, that side of the parking lot is listed as a future building site in the current campus master plan.

Dixon said there are no funds for the building yet for that site, but the university is updating its master plan for the next decade and will determine if a building goes there by 2030.

Craig Hill, UF’s associate vice president of business affairs, oversees parking and said parking options have to move when the campus evolves.

“This is nothing unusual for a college campus to have campus development relocate,” Hill said.

Hill wrote in an email, “The new building will house faculty and researchers from the College of Medicine, College of Pharmacy, and the Herbert Wertheim College of Engineering, who specialize in analyzing massive

SEE PARKING, PAGE 4

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UF gets a homerun

How a baseball player made a decision between playing for the MLB and UF, pg. 7

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2 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020

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VOLUME 114 ISSUE 63

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Local Events / News in Brief

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Add it to the alligator’s online calendar:

alligator.org/calendar AI Impact Challenge and the different projects that have already been a part of it.

THURSDAY

BLACK HISTORY MONTH LGBTQ+ Affairs Celebrates Black History Month Where: LGBTQ+ Affairs at UF, located at the Reitz Union Room 2210 When: Twice a week throughout February at 1 p.m.

What: LGBTQ+ Affairs will showcase films that depict black queerness such as “I Am Not Your Negro,” “Moonlight,” “Brother Outsider” and “Paris is Burning.” Trigger and content warnings will be placed throughout the viewing area.

Event run times may vary.

Chef Empowerment’s Black History Month Pop-Up Restaurant Where: Working Food, located at 219 NW 10th Ave. When: Feb. 28 from 5:30-8:30 p.m.

What: Chef Empowerment’s Underground Kitchen partners with Working Food to host an all-you-can-eat Southern buffet in collaboration with local black-owned businesses.

Tickets are $20.

GENERAL EVENTS MONDAY Tory Lanez Where: The O’Connell Center, located at 250 Gale Lemerand Drive When: 7:30 p.m.

What: Student Government Productions brings hip-hop artist Tory Lanez to UF. The Canadian rapper and singer is off the heels of his latest album release, “Chixtape 5.” Tickets are on sale at Ticketmaster and are about $20.

Florida Museum Water Film Series Where: Florida Museum of Natural History, located at 3125

Hull Road When: 6-8:30 p.m.

What: The Florida Museum of Natural History and the University of Florida Thompson Earth Systems Institute hosts free film screenings and panel discussions about Florida water and its conservation processes.

Monday will see a showing of the first film, “Water’s Journey: The Hidden Rivers of Florida.”

Eventgoers can meet and hold discussions with local organizations. This event is free to attend. Food and beverages will be available for purchase.

TUESDAY Migrating to Prison: America’s Obsession with Locking Up Immigrants Keynote Where: UF Smathers Library, located at 1545 W. University Ave. When: 2-3:30 p.m.

What: César Cuauhtémoc García Hernández, a writer and law professor at the University of Denver, holds a keynote speech on topics such as the impact of immigration imprisonment in the mid-1980s and how privatization of prisons has affected immigrants. The event is free to attend.

WEDNESDAY The Google AI Impact Challenge Where: UF Smathers Library, located at 1545 W. University Ave. When: 4-5 p.m.

What: Oscar Wahltinez, a developer programs engineer at Google, comes to Smathers Library to discuss the Google AI Impact Challenge, an open challenge to organizations to submit ideas for how AI can help change societal and environmental issues. Wahltinez will discuss his personal experience working with the Google

The Called Tour Where: North Central Baptist Gainesville, located at 8001 NW 23rd Ave. When: 7 p.m.

What: Christian vocal quartet Avalon comes to Gainesville for its tour, “The Called.” Avalon has been nominated for three Grammy Awards and are Dove Award and American Music Award winners. Avalon will be joined by special guest Sarah Kelly. General admission is $24.50.

SATURDAY Gainesville Hip Hop Night Where: High Dive, located at 210 SW Second Ave. When: 8 p.m.

What: Gainesville Hip Hop Night is a showcase of Gainesville’s up and coming hip-hop artists, including Marley the Messenger and Dorian James, QO, Young Citizen, Quinten Flanders and more. If you are interested in performing at the show, email HighDiveGville@gmail.com.

Tickets are $6 in advance and $8 night of show. Must be 18 or older unless accompanied by a legal parent or guardian.

Anyone under 21 must pay a $3 cover at the door.

Bed Race To End Child Homelessness Where: Trinity United Methodist Church, located at 4000 NW 53rd Ave. When: 9:30 a.m.-12 p.m.

What: Trinity Methodist Church presents its sixth annual Bed Race to end childhood homelessness. The event consists of a 100-yard dash of bedson-wheels and is intended to showcase the work the church does and what families without housing go through every week.

This year’s teams will compete for various accomplishments in the Bed Race, such as the fastest time, the funniest bed design and the highest fundraising team. The event is free to attend and includes children’s activities like face painting and a bounce house.

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MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 ALLIGATOR 3

African American studies: 50 years later On Thursday and Friday, African American Studies at UF hosted a 50-year celebration featuring a choir, panelist speakers and talks from the dean of the program.

Thursday morning, the celebration was held in Library East and began with a performance from the 1000 Voices of Florida choir. Following the performance, professors and staff from the program spoke on topics such as the history of the department and the significance of oral history in African American studies. The event featured a screening of the film “The Making of the Institute of Black Culture at UF.” On Friday, the new African American Studies offices were unveiled at Turlington Hall and Turlington Plaza alongside the African American Studies historic marker.

Lawren Simmons /Alligator Staff

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4 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Florida Highway Patrol UF revising its 2009 Climate Action Plan The plan aims to reduce UF’s discusses hit-and-runs THE FAMILY OF A GIRL KILLED IN A HIT-ANDRUN SPOKE OUT

By Samia Lagmis Alligator Staff Writer

Earlier this week, Vickie Hall collapsed at a Publix while paying for her groceries.

She said her legs gave out when she saw the cashier’s nametag read Hannah — the name of her 14-year-old daughter who was killed during a hit-and-run accident in October while walking home with friends.

At a press conference Friday for Florida Hit-and-Run Awareness Month, Hall held a photo of her daughter smiling at the beach against her chest as Florida Highway Patrol officials spoke at the press conference on the importance of staying at the scene of a crash.

There has been a dramatic trend of an increase in hit-andrun crashes in Florida, said FHP spokesperson Lt. Patrick Riordan.

He said there were about 102,000 in 2017, 103,000 in 2018, and almost 105,000 in 2019.

Of the 105,000 crashes, 206 people died, Riordan said.

FHP flyers for the #StayAtTheSceneFL campaign were distributed at the FHP Station, located at 6300 NW 13th St. The flyers listed penalties of property damages, injuries and fatalities associated with fleeing an accident.

Four people were killed in pedestrian or cyclist related crashes in Alachua County in January alone — a number Gainesville Police Department spokesperson Jorge Campos said is higher than usual for the time of year.

Hit-and-run crashes are occurring at an alarming rate in Florida, said FHP Troop B Major William Tierney. Troop B includes nine counties: Columbia, Suwannee, Hamilton, Alachua, Dixie, Gilchrist, Levy, Lafayette and Marion.

In January, 16-year-old DJ Washington, 21-year-old Denise Griffiths, 45-year-old William Moore and an unnamed female cyclist were struck and killed in Alachua County. The driver who hit the cyclist has not been found and the victim’s family has not yet been notified, GPD spokesperson Jorge Campos said.

Tierney said leaving the scene of the crash “will only make things worse.” Under Florida law, he said drivers

must stop immediately at the scene of a crash on both public and private roads.

He said it’s important for drivers involved in hit-and-run crashes to remain calm, remove their keys and get to a safe place before checking on other drivers and calling 911.

Corey Brown, father of Hannah Brown, cleared his throat and fought back tears as he expressed his thanks to the FHP for their help investigating his daughter’s case.

The hit-and-run driver, Brandon Holt of Waldo, was found and arrested by FHP eight days after the incident.

“It’s hard to find the right words for anybody,” Brown said. “I’m lost and a lot of people are lost.”

Riordan said experts with the troop “work diligently to factually conclude what occurred before, during and after a fatality crash” so applicable laws can be enforced.

He said the troop is very aware of the impact traffic fatality crashes have on families.

“Lives can be shattered when drivers fail to stop and help victims involved in a crash,” Riordan said.

Hall said the loss of her daughter affects her every day.

She is already a grandmother and said she struggles with the fact that she won’t ever have any grandchildren from her daughter.

“I still wake up and I want to know why I can’t hug my daughter,” Hall said.

@SLagmis slagmis@alligator.org

Alachua County Pedestrian Crashes 2019 Crashes: 156 Deaths: 10 Injuries: 131 2018 Crashes: 128 Deaths: 10 Injuries: 114

Alachua County Cyclist Crashes 2019 Crashes: 130 Deaths: 0 Injuries: 123 2018 Crashes: 133 Deaths: 4 Injuries: 122

greenhouse gas emissions

By Hannah Phillips Alligator Staff Writer

Summers are getting hotter, said a retired UF professor. The Paynes Prairie basin isn’t draining, and local crops are suffering. Their farmers are, too.

Deborah Scheuer, chair of Gainesville’s Climate Reality Project and former UF associate professor, said she sees climate change everywhere she looks. One place she doesn’t is on the university’s list of priorities.

UF’s Office of Sustainability is taking steps to change that.

With the help of students and faculty, UF is in the process of updating the university’s Climate Action Plan.

The plan was developed in 2009 and is set to undergo complete revision by 2021, said Hannah Ulloa, the UF Office of Sustainability spokesperson.

Ulloa said the new plan will be broken into six objectives: energy, transportation, infrastructure, academics, finance and resilience.

The goals of these six objectives are still largely undefined. The office hosted a listening session Wednes-

day to better understand student, faculty and community concerns before revising the plan, Ulloa said.

Some attendees suggested the office develop an environmental sustainability curriculum for UF professors to use, she said. Others asked that the new plan expand alternative forms of transportation for students and faculty to commute to campus, Ulloa said.

Faculty and student travel make up only 20 percent of UF’s total energy usage, said Matthew Williams, the director of the UF Office of Sustainability. A remaining 76 percent of energy is expended on-campus air conditioning and electricity systems.

Wednesday’s session was the first of many to come, Ulloa said. As of Thursday, she and her team were still parsing through pages upon pages of feedback and suggestions written by the session’s attendees.

“Hearing other people echo our ideas and even come up with new ones was really, really inspiring to see,” Ulloa said.

The plan will only pertain to UF’s main campus, Williams said. It will be collaboratively funded by many departments on campus and around

Gainesville, he added.

Environmental sustainability is not included in the criteria that determine a university’s rank, UF’s number one legislative priority.

Still, UF Spokesperson Steve Orlando said it’s a top priority of the university.

“I have no reason to think otherwise,” he said.

According to the 2020 Appropriations Project Bills database, only about 8 percent of this year’s requested legislative funding contributes to environmental sustainability efforts.

Scheuer, the retired UF professor, is an avid runner. When she leaves her house in the morning, she’s sweating before she makes it to the end of the street. She returns with a headache.

“It’s like running in a sauna,” she said. “It’s only going to get worse.”

Still, Scheuer said she can handle the heat. It’s her neighbors she’s concerned about, the ones who can’t afford air conditioning. It’s the farmers who work outside and grow her produce for a living.

“I’m not worried about me,” she said. “I’m worried about the people who have no escape.” @haphillips96 hphillips@alligator.org

The building on the lot will cost $135 million PARKING, from pg. 1 amounts of data to tackle complicated problems.”

He said multiple colleges will be able to recruit and retain accomplished faculty by offering them advanced facilities and the opportunity to join forces with other top researchers.

This building will cost $135 million, according to Hill.

He said the university is looking at improving the pathway between Garage 14 and the new building.

“We are looking at landscaping and adding shade (to the path),” he said.

The new place to park for orange decal holders is Garage 14, which opened Feb. 3, located on Gale Lemerand Drive, farther from the center of campus. The seven-story garage cost $32 million and has more than 2,000 spaces,

according to UF TAPS. Levels one and two have 468 orange spaces, and levels three through five have 917 spaces shared between orange and blue faculty decals.

No other parking will be added to replace the loss of parking at the surface lot because of the abundance of parking currently at Garage 14.

Hill said that doesn’t mean the university is done adding parking structures.

“One of the possibilities is the surface lot next to Norman Field will be replaced by a new parking garage connected to the existing garage,” he said. “Another location could be a new garage on Museum Road just south of Beaty Towers.”

His bond was $75,000 CHILD, from pg. 1 he did,” said Gainesville Police Department spokesperson Jorge Campos.

As of Sunday evening, Turner is still employed at UF and his employment status is under review, said UF spokesperson Steve Orlando. As of now, he’s prohibited from being on campus.

He admitted to authorities Thursday he was the owner of the Discord account, adding that no one else has access to his cell phone, which he used for the app, according to the report.

After being read his Miranda rights, he said he found the images himself on Discord and knew they were of children, according to the report. Turner told police

the photos were not his “normal preference” but said he was sexually aroused by them.

As of Friday afternoon, the underage children in the photos have not been identified by GPD, Campos said.

More than 100 tips regarding child pornography are submitted each year for the North Central Florida area, which includes Gainesville tips.

“Just because we don’t hear of it all the time, doesn’t mean it’s not going on,” Campos said, adding that due to the nature of the crime, it’s often committed in private.

Tips that are not solved are kept in a criminal intelligence database for later investigation, Campos said. Encryption devices and services that block legal ac-

@Noah_ram1 nram@alligator.org cess to possible evidence and leads can sometimes complicate these investigations.

“Those things really hinder or prohibit us from identifying a suspect and, in some cases, victims,” Campos said.

Authorities are working to minimize the impact on potential victims, as well as protecting existing victims from having their photos circulated by investigating these tips, according to Campos.

Turner was released Saturday at 1:22 a.m. after he was held in the Alachua County Jail on three felony counts of promotion of sexual performance by a child.

His bond was $75,000.

@AlexLDeLuca @SLagmis adeluca@alligator.org lagmis@alligator.org

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 ALLIGATOR 5

New Reserve Park celebrates opening THE PARK COST $950,000 AND WAS FUNDED BY THE HALF-CENT SALES TAX

By AJ Bafer Alligator Contributing Writer

Courtesy to The Alligator

An eagle sculpture displayed at the park is made of recycled shipping containers and beer kegs.

As the 208th U.S. Army Band played the national anthem on their brass instruments and drums Saturday morning, Gainesville community members, from children to veterans, silently stood to pay their respects at the newly opened Reserve Park.

More than 100 people came out to celebrate the grand opening of the park, located across from East End Eatery at 700 NE 11th St. The park pays tribute to the U.S. Army Reserve soldiers who trained at the site, said Elizabeth Waite, director of Gainesville Wild Spaces and Public Places.

The park’s site was a U.S. Army Reserve Center for the 257th movement control battalion, known as the Movers and Shakers, who occupied the space for more than 50 years before relocating in

2009.

The space has since been inhabited by protective gear company Phalanx Defense Systems who facilitated the park’s creation by offering the abandoned space at the community’s request, Waite said.

“The site is rich with history,” she said. “It’s been a long time in the making, and we’re very proud to open up a new neighborhood park.”

Waite said the park had been in development for nearly seven years and cost $950,000 with the majority of funding coming from a half-cent sales tax passed in 2016 to support parks and recreation in Alachua County.

Waite said the city commission first initiated funding for the project before Wild Spaces and Public Places began in 2017 and paid for the planting of 100 trees to fill the park’s space.

Reserve Park caters to all ages and features a community garden, a swing set and a playground, Waite said. It also has an eagle sculpture made with recycled shipping containers and beer kegs and an obstacle course that symbolizes the site’s military history.

Waite said park officials are looking for anyone with information or photos related to the history of the location to display on a board at the park’s entrance to make it as personalized as possible.

The ceremony ended with applause as the Shahboz family, Gainesville residents who competed on the television program “American Ninja Warrior,” cleared the obstacle course.

Retired veteran Walter Jackson, who served 27 years in the U.S. Army Reserve, said the park’s site was his training area when he joined in 1978. He said he felt bad when he passed by the overgrown field when it was unoccupied, remembering it as a place he trained and ate lunch.

Jackson said he has been in support of plans for the park since they were first announced a few years ago. He said he was surprised by the opening’s large turnout, and he never expected anything like Reserve Park to fill the space he once trained in.

“To see it as a park and looking nice now, I love it,” Jackson said. “(This is) the best thing the city could’ve done.”

Colorado group tries to draw Floridians with LGBTQ+ advertisement It was featured in The Alligator last Monday

By AJ Bafer Alligator Contributing Writer

The Sunshine State isn’t so great — at least, that’s what a Colorado business group wants Gainesville residents to think.

Sixteen newspapers in Florida featured an advertisement meant to appeal to the LGBTQ+ community.

“Move to Colorado. In Colorado, more than just our grass is protected. Your job is, too. We pride ourselves on our innovative businesses & ability to be ourselves at work,” the advertisement note stated with a rainbow displayed over mountains.

Florida has no comprehensive LGBTQ+ human rights protections compared to Colorado, and this is why the ad was published in Florida, said Jimmy Midyette, a staff attorney at the American Civil Liberties Union of Florida. The Florida Competitive Workforce Act is a legislative attempt to add protections for the LGBTQ+ community, but it has yet to be passed this year because Florida House Speaker José Oliva does not consider it a priority, Midyette said.

The ad is meant to bring skilled workers, especially young college graduates, into Colorado’s workforce and to entice business owners and job creators to move there, said Debra Brown, executive director of Good Business Colorado. She said the company hopes this would contribute to Colorado’s creative economy and help the state become the “next Silicon Valley.”

“We will welcome them with open arms as they are, be-

cause we know talent comes in all different shapes and sizes,” Brown said. “All are welcome here in Colorado.”

In attracting these individuals, Colorado’s protections of LGBTQ+ communities have a clear competitive advantage over Florida, with Colorado having a wider range from public accommodations to parental rights, Brown said.

The Alligator featured this ad in its paper last Monday after Good Business Colorado paid more than $2,000 for it.

The ad was first put in Florida newspapers a couple weeks ago, and how long it runs will depend on the reaction it gets and whether or not it gains traction, she said.

Carter Erickson, a 19-yearold UF electrical engineering freshman, is a transgender man who identifies as pansexual and said his rights have not been limited in his experience.

He said his transition even began with hormones provided

by UF. “People are really accepting,” Erickson said. “I have been more than grateful to be with my own chosen family up here.”

He said while those he has worked with have been accepting of his identity, he has heard of others in the LGBTQ+ community being discriminated against professionally.

About 60 percent of Floridians are covered by LGBTQ+ protections because they live in a city or county that has passed a local version of the act, including Gainesville and Alachua County, Midyette said.

“It’s important because we want the whole state. We

want everyone to be covered,” Midyette said.

The Florida House Speaker is not in favor of the act because identifying someone as LGBTQ+ includes asking them or patrolling their social media, which doing so is discriminatory, said Fred Piccolo, the communications director for Oliva.

“You don’t want people asking someone as they’re being hired: ‘Are you LGBTQ or not?’ because then you’re looking at someone discriminating in hiring by asking the question,” he said.

Piccolo said sexual orientation cannot be treated the same way as race or gender, which are more outwardly apparent.

He said Oliva believes employers should not have the right to ask someone’s sexual orientation, and he vehemently opposes discrimination based on that or gender identity.

The Alligator reached out to the president of UF’s Pride Student Union, Georges Obayi, through three phone calls and two emails and was notified Sunday morning the student organization did not want to comment on the topic.

Oliva would recognize the advertisement as part of the free market, and if Good Business Colorado feels the ad is a competitive advantage for them, they are welcome to use it, Piccolo said.

“We think that Florida’s a pretty great place to live, work and raise a family,” he said.

“We’ll put our environment, both personal, competitive and business-wise, up against Colorado’s any day of the week.”

Alligator File Photo

The ad, featured in Florida newspapers including The Alligator, was paid for by Good Business Colorado.

6 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020

Students and residents rally at university president’s office Nearly 50 people rallied Friday

By Stephany Matat Alligator Staff Writer

Students and food service workers are disappointed in UF’s President Kent Fuchs.

Nearly 50 people rallied in front of Fuchs’ office Friday to protest working conditions and wage problems from Aramark, the food service company that provides ser-

vices on campus.

Speakers included Aramark employees, members of Graduate Students United, the Young Democratic Socialists Association, United Faculty of Florida, the Alachua County Labor Coalition and the North Central Florida’s American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organizations, said Ashley Nguyen, a 22-year-old UF

Lily Strickland // Alligator Staff

Paul Ortiz, a 55-year-old UF history professor, spoke in front of the Tigert Hall entrance Friday during a protest for UF workers.

international studies and political science senior.

“Aramark workers at UF should know that there will be support for them, and that there are people that are willing to work with them to fight for their own rights,” Nguyen, the chair of Young Democratic Socialists Association, said.

The employees are experiencing hostile work environments with managers cursing out their workers, said Jeremiah Tattersall, a UF alumnus and a field representative for North Central Florida’s American Federation of Labor and Congress of Industrial Organization.

He said some workers have complained that their employers aren’t paying them for their overtime hours, despite constantly reminding them.

Nguyen said she emailed Fuchs to discuss their mission for a living wage of $15 an hour for food service workers and the right for all UF employees and contracted workers to unionize, but he declined without specifying a reason.

She also emailed him to speak at the rally.

“It would not be appropriate for me to meet with the Alachua County Labor Coalition,” Fuchs wrote in the email.

The U.S. Department of Labor requires workers who work over-

Lily Strickland // Alligator Staff

Jeremiah Tattersall, 33, spoke out against working conditions for UF employees on Plaza of the Americas Friday afternoon. He said it was ridiculous that President Fuchs did not want to meet with his students. time, more than 40 hours a week, must be paid their time and a half.

Tattersall, 33, said he files these complaints from Aramark employees to the department and is disappointed in Fuchs.

“I just want UF to do better and treat their workers better,” he said.

“There’s no excuse for President Fuchs not to meet with students who are concerned about working conditions of his food service workers.” smatat@alligator.org @StephanyMatat

Pet care clinic offers free services A laundry service for college students?

There’s an app for that SPAY AND NEUTERING PROCEDURES ARE AVAILABLE

By Allessandra Inzinna Alligator Staff Writer

Florida Animal Friend is helping fund spaying and neutering procedures for pets, and it wants students to know the service is available in Gainesville.

Florida Animal Friend donated $14,800 in August to St. Francis Pet Care Clinic so low-income pet owners can spay or neuter their cats or dogs for no cost. The donation covers 224 surgeries, and 72 have been completed since veterinarians began conducting surgeries in November, said Priscilla Caplan, a volunteer and a former secretary of the St. Francis Pet Care board.

St. Francis Pet Care Clinic is part of the St. Francis House, located at 413 S. Main St. The clinic offers basic veterinary care for the cats and dogs of low-income families, said Joanne Lopez, member of the St. Francis Pet Care board of directors.

All clients who reside in Alachua County, homeless or not, must produce proof of low-income status, such as food stamps, low-income housing or supplemental social security income.

“We really believe in keeping pets and their people together,” Lopez

said.

Spay and neutering procedures usually cost families several hundred dollars, Lopez said. Although the clinic has other functions besides neutering and spaying cats and dogs, this grant is specifically for that.

Lois Kostroski, the executive director for Florida Animal Friend, said unwanted pets either end up euthanized or left in shelters with a poor quality of life.

“If then we can provide spaying and neutering to prevent all of those additional births, then we’ve done a great thing for everyone, actually,” Kostroski said.

Approximately 19 million pets are living in poverty across America, according to data from American University. Forty percent of lowincome families who give up their pets would keep them if they had access to affordable veterinary care, according to a 2015 study by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, one of the largest humane societies in the world.

“There’s no reason that somebody of inadequate means can’t have a pet to fulfill their life,” Lopez said. “A lot of the clients wouldn’t wake up in the morning if they didn’t have an animal to take care of.” ainzinna@alligator.org @ainzinna

It was released in Gainesville in September

By Rachel Wiles Alligator Contributing Writer

Students can say goodbye to hours of folding laundry with a new app that does all the work instead.

UF masters graduate Kyle Lampkin created Laundr with an alumnus from the University of Central Florida. The app provides laundry services in Gainesville and Orlando.

A customer can order laundry to be picked up by a driver with a company’s laundry bag to take the user’s clothes and wash them, said Lampkin, a 24-year-old UF international business student. The clothes are returned cleaned, dried and folded within four hours or less.

Laundr has three options for subscription plans: minimalist, active and socialite. The minimalist pays $10 a week for 40 pounds of laundry a month. An activist pays $15 a week for 60 pounds and a socialite pays $20 a week for 80 pounds.

If a user doesn’t have a membership, costs are determined by the laundry’s weight. The service costs around 80 cents per pound, Lampkin said. Specific delivery fees are determined by how far away the pickup is for the driver.

Drivers wash the clothes at a partnered laundromat or by using their own laundry machine. Tips can be paid through the app.

Users can submit specific requests for their laundry, such as hanging shirts, separating colors, using hypoallergenic detergent, adding long-lasting scents and using personalized laundry bags. The most common requests are to not dry bras or bathing suits, said Michael Behfar, a 24-yearold UCF alumnus and Lampkin’s business partner.

The communal laundry machines in Enes Grahovac’s apartment, The Wynwood, are unreliable or filled with pet hair, he said.

“I found myself spending five hours dedicated to waiting for laundry, so I tried Laundr to see if they would take that process off my schedule, and they do a great job at it,” said Grahovac, a 22-year-old UF physics junior.

Since September, the company has nine paid employees in their office at Infinity Hall. Laundr expanded to Orlando Jan. 12.

“In the beginning, things were done completely haphazardly,” Behfar said, “Now, we are already through our first round of capital and already in our second location.”

Lampkin said he is happy to have seen the growth of the app from when he helped start it to where it is now.

“Although the idea may seem strange to people at first, we were encouraged by this and I think it really paid off for us,” Lampkin said.

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 ALLIGATOR 7

Hundreds of students and Gainesville residents CPR certified MORE THAN 300 PEOPLE WERE CERTIFIED

By Alexa Mickler Alligator Contributing Writer

Lauren Witte // Alligator Staff

Colleen Maloney, an 18-year-old UF nursing freshman, performs CPR on a mannequin. She said she came for practice and because the training cost only $5.

Clay Gibbons is training students and residents to try to save lives.

The owner of GatorCPR said he certified a woman who saw a hit-and-run a week after her training. She performed CPR on the victim so she could go to the hospital. The parents said they were grateful the victim didn’t die on the street.

Gibbons partnered with Gatorsavers, a UF student organization that increases CPR training on campus, for two sessions Saturday for people to get CPR certified or renew their certification for $5.

Three-hundred eighty people attended the event.

GatorCPR is an organization that trains and certifies people in CPR, first aid, basic life support and advanced cardiovascular life support.

Gibbons said the goal of this event is to bring awareness and educate people who have never been trained. The usual cost for training is about $45, he said.

“Hearing stories about the impact people have had by taking action has made a difference in how I teach,” Gib-

bons said. “I don’t cut corners and make sure people leave confident with their skills.”

Both sessions were open to the public, and those who attended a session will be certified for two years, Gibbons said.

CPR is an acronym for cardiopulmonary resuscitation, and nearly 45 percent of national out-of-hospital cardiac arrest victims are saved because bystanders knew how to do CPR, according to 2014 data from the American Heart Association.

Erika Jensen, 22, has volunteered as an instructor for two years. The UF chemical engineering senior said she wants people to be prepared when someone’s life is at risk.

“It’s a stepping stone, something that everyone should know and be conscious of,” she said.

Khaai Nguyen, a 21-year-old UF biology senior, said this event was her first time in CPR training, and the low cost for certification was a big factor regarding why she went.

“Now I realize how important it is to take initiative when someone’s life is on the line,” Nguyen said.

Gatorsavers and GatorCPR paid about $1,800 for the event, and the revenues from it will fund an AED machine

to be donated to a non-profit organization, which is still being decided on. An AED, which stands for automated external defibrillator, is a machine that detects irregular heart rhythms.

GatorCPR has been involved with this event since 2012 and has certified 4,500 people since then. It will have the next CPR certification training next January.

“If I can put another person out there in the community who knows CPR, we will hopefully have more success stories of people doing something rather than nothing,” Gibbons said.

Songs to do CPR to According to NPR, the tempo at which CPR should be performed is 100-120 beats per minute, or BPM. Here are some songs with the correct BPM to give CPR.

“Stayin’ Alive” by the Bee Gees “Hips Don’t Lie” by Shakira “Break My Stride” by Matthew Wilder “Dancing Queen” by ABBA “Crazy in Love” by Beyonce and Jay-Z “Just Dance” by Lady Gaga “Life is a Highway” by Rascal Flatts “The Imperial March” from the “Star Wars” franchise

Meet Hunter Barco: Former MLB recruit, now a UF pitcher THE LEFT-HANDED PITCHER IS A BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION FRESHMAN

By Lexi Ashby Alligator Contributing writer

As people around the world cross out May 31 on their calendars, young baseball players cross their fingers.

The month draws the men to the edge of their seats and glues phones to their hands as they anxiously await a call that could change their life forever — the call from Major League Baseball teams drafting the newest dynasty of young baseball stars.

Hunter Barco, a 19-year-old UF business administration freshman, was set to become one of those stars. He had finally ended the chase and caught up to his 8-year-old self’s dream when he was chosen in the Major League Baseball draft.

He turned the offer down.

Barco had always wanted to be a professional baseball player. Since the beginning of high school, he saw college as a backup plan. He dreamed of hearing his name called in the first round of the draft to join the select group of baseball players who go professional straight out of high school.

Like most other baseball players, Barco started young: first in T-ball, then moving on to the challenge of hitting a moving target. However, it was not until his summer going into freshman year at The Bolles School in Jacksonville that he realized he was good at the sport.

Really good.

He committed to the University of Virginia when he was 14. As time went by, his love for warm weather grew and he decided Virginia was not in his preferred latitude.

The Summer going into his senior year of high school, he decided that UF, located just over an hour away from his hometown of Jacksonville, was the place for him — if he did not go to the MLB. As a prerequisite for going into the draft, Barco had to get an MRI to ensure all ligaments and muscles were working smoothly. Upon examination of the results, the radiologist pronounced his teres minor — a muscle in the shoulder — completely torn. The reading caught Barco off guard, as he had only been feeling slight soreness in his shoulder.

After that, Barco shut down. He was convinced the tear meant he needed to take some time off to allow his shoulder to heal. Press immediately caught wind of the injury and broke the news to the public. The No. 1 left-handed pitcher of the 2019 class was hurt.

It was not until Barco received a second opinion on the MRI that he discovered his teres minor was, in fact, not torn. However, the damage had already been done. The press knew about the injury, and those in the baseball world were predicting a drop in his draft stock, where analysts believe players will end up in the draft.

Barco was always seen as a backof-the-first-round player by those in the baseball industry.

They were right.

In a phone call he received in June, the Milwaukee Brewers drafted Barco, offering him a multi-million dollar signing bonus to join their team. However, the large sum of money thrown at Barco wasn’t enough to convince him to forgo four years at UF. The minimum amount of money he would accept to sign with the team was $3 million. Barco said this price was a sum of all the grueling practices and long hours he spent pushing to get just a little bit better.

When the offer fell short, he was missing out on more than just money; he was missing out on acknowledgment of his long-time dedication to improvement. Not to mention the $3 million had to carry him through seven seasons as a minor league player — a time where his salary would be little more than scraps.

“After that, I told my agent to take me out of the draft. I said, ‘No one is going to pay $3 million at this point.

I’m just going to go to school,’” said Barco.

Disappointment struck but was quickly washed away when a wave of excitement for his newfound college years settled in.

Barco hopes to make it to the College World Series three times in his career as a pitcher at Florida. He believes the team will make it further than it did last year, as the young team has more experience this year coupled with a new freshman class.

Junior pitcher Tommy Mace also anticipates more success for the Gators this year partly due to the arrival of such a strong freshman class.

“Hunter’s arrival to the team will definitely up the competition for the mound,” he said. “There are so many great pitchers in the freshman class that competition is tight and everyone’s fighting to try to earn a spot.”

Barco’s dreams of becoming a professional baseball player have not disappeared. He is currently studying business administration but has his mind set on playing baseball for as long as time will permit.

As for his shoulder injury, he has completely recovered and has been going strong since arriving at Florida.

Barco is attacking the 2020 season head-on and is nothing but ecstatic for the first spring season of his collegiate career.

Courtesy to The Alligator

Hunter Barco, a 19-year-old business administration freshman, pitches in an exhibition game against Georgia. He threw one inning and struck out three batters against the Bulldogs.

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St. Francis House is a homeless shelter located in downtown Gainesville.

Our mission is to empower families with children to transition from homelessness to self-sufficiency by providing case management, housing, food, training and educational resources in a secure environment.

If interested in volunteering please contact the volunteer coordinator at 352-378- 9079 ext 317 or sfhcoor@stfrancis.cfcoxmail.com St Francis House depends on monetary support from individual donors and community businesses in order to provide meals to the homeless and the hungry.

To make a donation by mail, please send checks payable to St. Francis House P.O. Box 12491 Gainesville Fl 32604 or our website at

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answers on page 9 Release Date: Monday, Saturday,February February24, 22,2020 2020

Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis

ACROSS 1 On a peg, as a Rubber-stamped golf ball item?

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ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:

By Matt C.C. Burnikel McKinley ©2020 Tribune Content Agency, LLC

02/21/20 02/24/20 02/22/20

02/24/20 02/22/20

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 ALLIGATOR 9

3. Who was the MVP of the first two AFL Championship Games?

4. Princeton's Pete Carril is the winningest coach in Ivy League men's basketball history

© 2020 King Features Synd., Inc. 1. Who was the last Oakland A’s player before Khris Davis in 2018 to lead the American League in home runs for a season?

2. How many times has a Tampa Bay Rays pitcher by won 20-plus gamesR in a David L. Hoyt 2-24-20 1 3 2 season?

3. Who scored the first rushing 4 touchdown in Super Bowl history?

4. Name the last Division II men’s 5 college basketball player to be selected in the NBA Draft.

5. Which player won the most Stanley Cups without ever playing for the 6 Montreal Canadiens?

6. In 2019, the U.S. women’s national soccer team set a record for biggest margin of victory7 in a World Cup game (13 goals). Which country had held the mark?

ACROSS 7. Of WBC heavyweight boxing ANSWER CLUE champion 1.Deontay Wilder’s 43 pro L S H P O I Shoe ____ bouts, how5. many have ended with O C R V E ____ story 6. Chicken ____ HTBOR Wilder recording a knockout?

7. Motion ____ ROSSEN Answers DOWN CLUE hit 52 homers to ANSWER 1. Mark McGwire lead the A.L. 1996.

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1967.

4. Robert Whaley of Walsh University was selected with thethe 51st pickpuzzle in by looking at the clues and Complete crossword the answers. When the puzzle is complete, 2005. How to play unscrambling unscramble the circled letters to solve the BONUS. 5. Red Kelly won eight Stanley 2020 Tribune Content Agency, LLC & Hoyt Designs. All Rights Reserved.

Cups,Send four with Detroit and four with comments to TCA - 160 N. Stetson, Chicago, Illinois 60601 or DLHoyt@HoytInteractiveMedia.com Toronto, between 1950 and 1967.

6. Germany won a World Cup match by 11 goals in 2007.

• It was American journalist, au7. Wilder has recorded 41 knockouts on his way to a 42-0-1 record. thor and humorist Don Marquis who

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King Features Weekly Service

2. How many times has Oregon State's men's baseball team won the College World Series?

January 27, 2020

1. Who was the last Cincinnati Reds pitcher before Anthony DeSclafani in 2018 to hit a grand slam?

(514 victories). Which two coaches entered the 2019-20 season tied for second?

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TM

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7. Juan Martin del Potro of Argentina, in 2009.

6. Jeff Burton and Kevin Harvick, with four wins each.

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are born on Oct. 5 than on any other day of the year. If you do the math, 2020 you’ll find that New(c) Year’s EveKing is 9Features Synd., Inc. months and 5 days before that. *** Thought for the Day: “Show me a hero, and I will write you a tragedy.”

— F. Scott Fitzgerald

5. Four Stanley Cups (1984, '85, '87, '88).

4. Yale's James Jones and Penn's Frank Dunphy, with 310 wins apiece.

3. Billy Cannon of the Houston Oilers (1960 and '61 seasons).

2. Three times (2006, '07, '18).

1. Bob Purkey, in 1959.

--Gloria Steinem little. than having lived too Dying seems less sad

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King Features Weekly Service

made the following sage observa© 2020 King Features Syndicate, Inc. tion: "Procrastination is the art of

By Samantha Weaver keeping up with yesterday."

••InIt 1905, Sir Arthur Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes stories, was famed culturalConan anthropologistbecame Margaretone Mead who madepeople the fol-ever to be fined for speeding. of the first lowing sage observation: “One of the needs is having someonethat published on a daily basis was in •oldest Thehuman first recorded newspaper to wonder where you are when you Rome in 59at night.”

B.C. don’t come--home It’s been estimated thatthe a million ••Abraham Lincoln was only American president to witness battle firstpigeons live in New York City. hand while in office.

• When pop star Christina Aguilera is she insists having a police •onIntour, Babylon 4,000onyears ago, it was accepted practice that for a month after escort. She hates to be stuck in traffic. the wedding, the bride's father would supply his son-in-law with all the • Next time you’re heading to Illinois, heoffcould drink. Mead is a honey beer, and so that time became youmead can stop in Metropolis and visit the known self-declared of Superas thebirthplace honey month -- what we know today as the honeymoon. man. In honor of their hometown supercitizens a 15-foot •hero, ThethePledge of erected Allegiance was published in 1892 in celebration of the bronze statue of him on Main Street.

400th anniversary of Columbus' voyage to the New World. It didn't con• It was Abraham Lincoln who signed thelegislation words "under God," the though, until 1954, when they were added intotain law the that created Secret That very night,

by Service. an act of Congress in heanwas attempt to check the creeping advance of assassinated.

Communism."

• "Godless Those who study such things say that on the 13th of every month,• • • triskaidekaphobia causes a loss of $83 million tofor American Thought the Day:business "Peopledue whotohave no weaknesses are terrible; there is absenteeism from work and other disno way of taking advantage of them." ruptions.

-- Anatole France • In the United States, more babies

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SOFTBALL

UF downs Nebraska to conclude Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic

By Graham Marsh Sports Writer

Alligator File Photo

Natalie Lugo tallied 22 strikeouts over the weekend.

The Gators proved their top-10 ranking with multiple wins over ranked teams this past weekend.

Florida defeated Nebraska 6-3 on Sunday at the Mary Nutter Collegiate Classic in Cathedral City, California. That win concluded a weekend for the Gators in which they went 4-1 on the west coast. In all likelihood, now-No. 7 UF will climb into the top-five in the USA Today/NFCA Coaches Poll after an excellent weekend, highlighted by forcing No.1 UCLA to extra innings late Saturday night.

Florida’s pitching staff showed consistency all weekend. Despite working with a four-person rotation in the circle (Danni Farley did not appear in any of Florida’s five games this weekend), the Gators all performed comparably, conceding just 14 runs through five games.

On Sunday, the pitching load was largely shouldered by junior Natalie Lugo.

She threw just over six innings, starting the first five before senior Katie Chronister relieved her in the sixth. Lugo re-entered the circle in the final inning to end the game and the tournament for Florida. It was enough to limit the Cornhuskers to three runs on the afternoon while her offense scored six. UF’s runs came off an RBI from senior Kendyl Lindaman, two from sophomore Charla Echols, two from senior Jordan Roberts and one from freshman Julia Cottrill.

The efforts against the Bruins on Saturday came from the arms of Chronister, sophomore Elizabeth Hightower and freshman Rylee Trlicek. Chronister and Hightower only combined for a little over two innings of work. However, Trlicek carried it the rest of the way.

She conceded seven hits against UCLA but only allowed two of them to turn into runs. That ability to close kept the scoreline

SWIMMING

narrow for the Gators, forcing an eighth inning against the nation’s top team.

Offensively, UF was below its average total of just over six runs a game entering the weekend, but that is due to stiffer competition in the tournament. In the most recent poll, only one team that Florida had played all year (No. 8 Michigan) was ranked in the Top 25 heading into the weekend. But at the Mary Nutter Classic, four out of the five teams coach Tim Walton’s group faced were ranked. Even against that stiff competition and hitting being a huge issue last year, this year’s version of Florida softball averaged 3.5 runs per game this weekend.

UF now gets its longest break since the start of the season, with five days until it retakes the field. The Gators will be back home Friday to face Louisiana Lafayette for their first series of the year. @GrahamMarshUF gmarsh@alligator.org

Zach of All Trades

Men eight-peat at SECs, women take second Parity is good for college basketball

By Ainslie Lee Sports Writer

Stripped of his socks and shoes, Florida’s men’s swimming coach Anthony Nesty stood on the pool deck in the James E. Martin Aquatics Center in Auburn, Alabama.

As the confetti fell and his post-meet interview concluded, he stepped to the waters’ edge and made the celebratory plunge.

For the eighth-consecutive year and the 41st time in school history, the No. 11 Florida men’s swimming team was crowned SEC Champions, leaving Texas A&M in its wake.

After hauling in 15 medals — five gold, four silver and six bronze — the Gators amassed 1,194 points, 218.5 more than the second-place Aggies.

Sophomore Kieran Smith, who was awarded the men’s Swimmer of the Meet recognition, lit up the competition for five straight days.

Smith snatched a medal in all but the final day of competition.

And though Smith’s individual SEC titles in the 500 free and 400 individual medley, and his contributions in 800 free relay and 400 medley had implications within the conference meet, his performances sounded throughout the

swimming world.

Leading off Florida’s 800 free relay, Smith’s 200-yard split time of 1:30.11 was good enough for a SEC and UF record. Smith’s swim in the relay also stands as the fourth-fastest 200-yard swim in history.

In the 500 free, Smith touched the wall in 4.06.32, setting a new NCAA and American record.

However, he wasn’t the only Florida swimmer to make his way into the record books.

Sophomore Robert Finke posted the fastest mile-swim in American history on the final day of the meet.

Erasing six seconds from the previously-held American record, Finke stroked through 1,650 yards in 14:12.08.

“I am incredibly proud of our men,” Nesty said in a release.

“This championship is extremely challenging physically due to the length of days in the competition itself. Every team wants the prize and are equally hungry.”

Meanwhile, Florida’s No. 7-ranked women’s team managed a runner-up finish for the second straight season.

Battling to the wire, the Gators outscored the future-champion Tennessee Volunteers by 68 points in the final day of action.

Kieran Smith was named Swimmer of the Meet at the SEC Championships. He set a new American record in the 500 free and took home two individual gold medals and a bronze.

However, by the end of the meet, Florida remained just 28.5 points shy.

Florida sophomore Leah Braswell notched a third-place finish in the 1,650-yard free on Saturday with a 15:54.54, while junior diver Emma Whitner struck silver after her performance on the platform.

Senior Sherridon Dressel would also pick up one of the Gators’ combined seven medals in her performance in the 100 back after posting a 50.64, good for a silver medal.

“It was truly a team effort with all 22 of our athletes contributing throughout the week,” Florida coach Jeff Poppell said. “No one really gave us a chance heading into the meet but our team believed we could win. We just ran out of gas a little this evening.”

Now, Florida’s swim squads turns its focus to the NCAA Championships. The women’s championships span March 1821 and March 25-28 for the men.

The men will host a Last Chance Invitational at UF on Feb. 28-29.

Meanwhile, the Gators’ divers will head to the NCAA Diving Zones March 9-11. @AinsliesTwoBits alee@alligator.org

T

he odds of completnally, Kansas ascended ing a perfect March to the top spot and lost at Madness bracket are Villanova. one in 2.4 trillion. A On Saturday, now-No. person has a better 1 Baylor was knocked off chance of becoming the Presby No. 3 Kansas 64-61 at ident of the United States or home. being crushed to death by a This has been a Zachary Huber theme all season where vending machine. zhuber@alligator.org However, when March top 10 teams have come rolls around this year, the and gone like a revolving chances of having a perfect bracket will door. be slimmer, and March Madness will be And it’s refreshing to have more must-see television because of unprec- than a handful of teams dominating the edented parity. college basketball landscape. It’s similar College basketball needed parity to to what is happening in the NBA due to help the sport recover from the dark the lack of super teams. cloud that hangs following the FBI corThe parity college basketball is seeruption scandal. ing this season is unparallelled and not In Oct. 2018, the FBI concluded a even the best teams are safe from it. three-year probe focused on coaches Kentucky coach John Calipari said being paid ten of thousands dollars to normally he believes there are about steer NBA-bound players toward sport eight teams who are capable of winning agents, financial advisers and apparel the national championship and about companies.

20 who could reach the Final Four.

The parity in college basketball we “I tell you right now, there may are witnessing this year is good for the be 25 teams that can win the national sport. championship,” Calipari said on Jan. In college basketball history, there 23 during an Southeastern coaches has never been a season where we saw teleconference, according to Kentucky. five different No. 1 teams before New com. “There may be 60 or 70 teams that Year’s Day. can get to a Final Four.”

The college basketball season kicked There have been more upsets this off with then-No. 2 Kentucky knocking season than in years past because the off then-No. 1 Michigan State — who talent is spread out more evenly instead are now unranked — in the Champions of the best players flocking to Kentucky, Classic. After the Wildcats took over the Duke, Michigan State, Kansas or North top spot, it fell to Evansville at home.

Carolina.

The Wildcats were then replaced by Duke, and it proceeded to fall to Stephen F. Austin in front of the Cameron Read the rest online at alligator.org/sports Crazies. Next, Louisville climbed to No. 1 and was defeated by Texas Tech. Fi-

Florida completes sweep of Miami in three sports After the baseball team's sweep of UM, the Gators have swept the Hurricanes in football, baseball and men's basketball in the same academic year for the first time in history, according to Alligator Army.

Follow us for updates

For updates on UF athletics, follow us on Twitter at @alligatorSports or online at www.alligator.org/sports

MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020 ALLIGATOR 11

WOMEN’S BASKETBALL

UF edges out No. 22 Arkansas at home behind Smith’s 26 points

By Bryan Matamoros Sports Writer

A major reason for Florida’s newfound success this season has been the on-court relationship between guards Kiara Smith and Lavender Briggs.

The backcourt tandem has developed a strong rapport through 27 games, but a misunderstanding between the two in the closing seconds of Sunday night’s contest against Arkansas almost led to an undesired outcome for the Gators.

Briggs lined up in front of the scorer’s table and looked for an open teammate, as UF clung to a three-point lead with 1.5 seconds remaining in the fourth quarter.

All Florida had to do was complete the inbounds pass out

of the timeout and sink a pair of free throws to put the game out of reach, but Razorbacks guard Chelsea Dungee prevented that from happening. She blanketed Smith every step of the way and intercepted the ball after an errant pass.

Dungee’s potential game-tying shot at the buzzer from near half court was off the mark, and Florida held on for an 83-80 victory over No. 22 Arkansas at the O’Connell Center.

The Gators (15-12, 6-8 SEC) and Razorbacks (21-6, 9-5 SEC) met earlier this year in late January, but the result was significantly different.

Arkansas came away with a 22-point win, while Smith recorded just 10 points, a rebound and an assist.

This time around, the redshirt junior paced Florida with a career-high 26 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists. Six of those points came in the final two-and-a-half minutes of the fourth to stymy Arkansas’ comeback attempt after being down by 14 in the first quarter.

Briggs dropped 20 points and shot 8 of 16 from the field, marking the first time since March 3 of 2019 that UF had two players score 20 or more.

The Razorbacks, on the other hand, were led by guards Amber Ramirez and A’Tyanna Gaulden, each of whom registered 17 points.

Gaulden was at the forefront of Arkansas’ second unit, one that allowed Arkansas to get back into the game after going

down by as much as 14 in the opening quarter.

She accounted for more than half of her team’s bench points (33) and nearly matched the output of Florida’s reserves (20).

The redshirt junior’s effort wasn’t enough, however, especially with the Gators outscoring the Razorbacks 52-43 in the paint.

“We led most of the game, and even when they (Arkansas) came back, we didn’t flinch,” Newbauer said. “(We) just played with aggressiveness on every possession, even when we made mistakes or didn’t get stops...That was the difference in the game for us today.” @bryan_2712 bmatamoros@alligator.org

Samantha Harrison // Alligator Contributor

Kiara Smith scored a season-high 26 points in the upset win.

GYMNASTICS

The Gators must avoid letdown in final three meets

By Noah Ram Sports Writer

The situation was the same for the Gators almost exactly a year ago Friday.

Last season, then-No. 3 Florida was undefeated in SEC play with two meets left in the regular season and were welcoming then-No. 7 Georgia on Feb. 22, 2019.

A win would have clinched the SEC regular season title.

But it didn’t happen.

UF lost to the Bulldogs 197.45-197.375 and suffered its only SEC loss of the season.

The SEC regular season title was clinched the following week against Arkansas, but the loss prevented the Gators from being the No. 1 seed in the 2019 SEC Tournament and lowered their seeding the NCAA Tournament.

This time around, things were different. No. 2 Florida hosted No. 8 Alabama on Friday night. A win would clinch the conference title. UF came out ready and outclassed the Crimson Tide, putting up its second highest score of the season in a 198.05-197.45 win.

Coach Jenny Rowland said following the win that a different approach was taken leading into this meet.

“We didn’t really talk about it last season,” she said.

“This season, I laid it all out on the table, this is an op-

portunity, what are we going to do with it?”

Despite being SEC regular season champs, the Gators (8-0, 6-0 SEC) face one of their biggest challenges of the season: Circumventing a meltdown in the final three meets of the 2020 season.

The first test will be this Friday night against No. 11 Georgia, the same team that ruined their title hopes last season.

This Georgia team (8-5, 2-3 SEC) isn’t as talented as the one that came into the O’Dome last season, but it did beat No. 12 Kentucky this week on the road and is jumping at the opportunity to put a dent in its rival’s magical season again.

“We’ve all been to Georgia before and we know it’s an intense atmosphere there,” senior Amelia Hundley said.

“But I think we’re ready for it, especially coming off of this.”

One gymnast who won’t lack motivation will be junior Alyssa Baumann, whose sister — Rachel — competes for the Bulldogs.

“I’m going to have a bunch of family there, and it’ll be really cool to watch her compete again and hopefully beat her again,” Baumann said.

A loss to the Bulldogs probably won’t change anything for seeding in the SEC Tournament, since Florida has a

two-game lead on every other SEC school.

However, a loss to Georgia — or any other remaining opponents — could impact NCAA Tournament seeding.

After their visit to Athens, the Gators travel to State College, Pennsylvania, to take on Penn State on March 7.

There, Florida star Trinity Thomas is sure to have an entourage watching her. The sophomore is from York, Pennsylvania, a little over 100 miles from PSU’s campus.

UF will close the season against Texas Woman’s University at home on March 13.

That meet will be on senior night, where UF’s four seniors — Rachel Gowey, Sierra Alexander, Maegan Chant and Hundley — will be playing in their final home meet.

One thing working in the Gators’ favor is the Nittany Lions and Pioneers are not ranked in the Road to Nationals Top 25, their first opponents all season long not ranked at the time of their meet.

“It will be easy to get back into the gym on Sunday to prepare for our next opportunity,” Rowland said. “We are taking it day-by-day and trying to get better each day.”

@Noah_ram1 nram@alligator.org

LACROSSE

Fouls catch up to Florida in home loss to Loyola Maryland

By Christian Ortega Sports Writer

Alligator File Photo

UF plays Kennesaw State on Wednesday on the road.

It was a slow and methodical breakdown, Saturday against Loyola Maryland.

In the past two weeks, Florida would have answers to each of their opponents’ scores, but the No. 3 Gators couldn’t outpace the No. 10 Greyhounds.

Like with its first two games, UF (2-1) conceded the first goal. But it wasn’t until nearly five minutes in, down 2-0, that Shannon Kavanagh responded, scoring her 13th goal of the season. Less than a minute later, the Greyhounds’ Sam Fiedler got her fifth this year. Twice more the two teams traded blows, but backto-back Elli Kluegel scores opened the tap for Loyola.

It wasn’t quick, as it took three minutes for the Greyhounds (3-0) to push their lead from two to five points. When progressing on offense, ball carriers methodically found an open player, taking extra time to find the one Florida defender who missed a read. Off the ball, attackers repeatedly found ways to cut toward the crease, creating multiple options to score.

And if each goal applied pressure, Florida’s 26 fouls catalyzed their frustrations.

Frustration led to forced passes, in the hopes that a connection through a tight window would salvage the game. That frustration spread throughout the UF fans in attendance like a virus, leading to vocal outcries each time a warranted call was missed or a Gator was booked.

Florida had the same amount of fouls against Maryland — they had half against Colorado.

Coach Amanda O’Leary is aware of the team’s propensity to commit fouls, and it’s something she wants to work on.

That includes emphasizing the team’s ability to drive to the goal; her effort to reduce scoring lapses and ease the pressure off midfielders Kavanagh and Brianna Harris, who have combined for 24 goals this season.

Kavanagh, with her two goals and nine draw controls, didn’t wilt under pressure, but the team suffered omit lapses of production that resulted in allowing six unanswered goals following halftime.

For its effort, the team did not stop trying to take the game back, Harris’ second goal with

58 seconds left illustrated their desire to cling to hope. But the mistakes they made early created an insurmountable wall to climb.

With a mid-week game against 0-3 Towson, Florida has an opportunity to iron out its flaws. For casual fans, what appears to be a meaningless game could prove to be important for a young team that’s still experiencing growing pains.

“Everybody needs to be confident enough to go to the goal cage,” O’Leary said. “(There are) A lot of games left. That’s a huge benefit. It gives us an opportunity to look at the deficiencies we had today.” @unofficialchris cortega@alligator.org

12 ALLIGATOR MONDAY, FEBRUARY 24, 2020

MEN’S BASKETBALL

Gators guards falter at UK, denying UF a signature win

By Kyle Wood Sports Writer

Florida nearly punched its ticket to the NCAA Tournament for the fourth-straight year on Saturday at Kentucky.

The opportunity was there for the Gators to add a signature road win to their resume, ease their nerves on Selection Sunday and win their fourth game in a row.

But UF came up short against Kentucky, which maintained their position atop the SEC with a 6559 win.

Forward Keyontae Johnson continued the tear he’s been on with a near double-double effort against UK. The sophomore put up 19 points and nine rebounds in the loss. Johnson is averaging 16.4 points and 8.4 rebounds per game in February on a scorching 54 percent shooting clip.

Kerry Blackshear Jr. turned in his best performance since the win against Auburn on Jan. 18.

He scored 18 points, his highest total in seven weeks, and grabbed

six boards.

The problem for Florida was that its other three starters combined for just six points.

The backcourt duo of Noah Locke and Andrew Nembhard faltered at the worst possible time for the Gators. Locke had hit 14 threes on 22 tries in his previous three games but went 0 for 5 in Lexington, Kentucky. He finished with zeroes across the box score aside from two fouls and a turnover in 23 minutes of play.

Nembhard didn’t fare much better in the scoring department, finishing with just four points, his second-lowest output of the season. He did, however, notch six rebounds and six assists.

Tre Mann was the beneficiary of Locke’s off night, matching his career-high with 13 points in 29 minutes of play. The freshman guard provided the outside shooting spark that was missing from the UF offense by connecting on a trio of three-pointers.

In the end, Immanuel

Quickley’s career night proved to be too much for Florida to overcome. The loss to Kentucky continued the Gators’ road struggles this season as UF fell to 3-6 on the road.

There are two remaining road games on the schedule for Florida: a matchup Saturday at Tennessee and a March 4 bout at Georgia.

At home, the Gators play LSU on Wednesday night and Kentucky on March 7 to close the regular season. UF lost to both teams on the road by a combined eight points.

ESPN’s latest Bracketology from Feb. 21 has Florida projected as a No. 9 seed playing Illinois in the first round. The Kentucky and LSU games present opportunities to improve on its potential seeding and both teams are currently ahead of the Gators in the SEC standings.

@Kkylewood kwood@alligator.org

Samantha Harrison // Alligator File Photo

Gators forward Keyontae Johnson scored a team-high 19 points in the road loss to Kentucky.

Key performers in Florida’s sweep of Miami Impact Hitters Jacob Young

Josh Rivera

Jordan Butler

The sophomore outfielder hit 7 for 13 with two RBI, two doubles and a run scored.

The freshman shortstop hit 5 for 11 with three RBI, a homerun and two runs scored.

The junior designated hitter hit 3 for 7 with one RBI and one run scored.

Impact Pitchers Tommy Mace

The junior right-hander allowed one run on two hits in seven innings pitched. He also struck out eight batters.

Jack Leftwich

The junior righthander allowed one run on four hits and struck out six batters.

Hunter Barco

The freshman lefthander allowed one run on two hits in 5.1 innings pitched. He also struck out seven batters and earned his first career win.

Alligator File Photo

Sophomore Jacob Young had a multi-hit day in each game this weekend. He brought his average up to .407 after his seven-hit weekend, two of which were extra base hits.

UF is 8-0, of to best start under O’Sullivan

BASEBALL, from pg. 1

man lefty once again, and the decision paid off.

Barco responded by striking out the next batter to retain Florida’s lead and he flexed his muscles as he made his way into the dugout.

The freshman’s composure and confidence on the mound in just his second career start helped the No. 2 Gators to a 5-3 victory over the No. 3 Hurricanes. With UF (8-0) sweeping UM (4-3) over the weekend, it has now won each of the last six regularseason series between the two programs, including 15 of the last 18 games.

“It’s great to have a great arm, but you still have to command your secondary pitches,” O’Sullivan said in a release. “I was really pleased he was able to find that in the fifth inning.”

Barco hurled 92 pitches against Miami. He faced 23 batters and struck out seven, giving up only two hits and one earned run in 5.1 innings pitched.

“When he has his slider for strikes, with the fastball he has, and he’s got that changeup that’s got some tumbling action, he’s really tough to hit,” O’Sullivan said.

UM right-hander Slade Cecconi wasn’t as solid as his

counterpart.

The sophomore pitcher allowed two runs and two hits in the opening inning and a solo homer to shortstop Josh Rivera at the top of the second to give the Gators an early 3-0 advantage.

Center fielder Jud Fabian homered off Cecconi, too.

His home run over the leftfield wall in the fifth inning was his third of the season, which leads the team. Fabian was a combined 2 of 12 from the plate against Miami throughout the weekend before his solo blast.

Cecconi was replaced in the following inning by freshman left-hander Carson Palmquist, who surprised some Florida batters with his slider and breaking ball throughout the game.

He finished the day with five strikeouts and gave up zero hits or runs to the 10 UF batters that he faced.

The Hurricanes cut their deficit to just one in the bottom of the eighth following a two-run homer from Gil off Gators right-hander David Luethje, but Florida ultimately clung on to its lead, giving O’Sullivan his first 8-0 start since coming to the program in 2008. @bryan_2712 bmatamoros@alligator.org