Franchise Opportunities in Jacksonville, FL

Uptick comes as White House warns that 100 million people could get COVID-19 this fall

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – Florida has above 1,000 adults hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 for the first time since March, according to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services data.

HHS reported Monday that there were 1,052 adults hospitalized with confirmed COVID-19 in Florida. The last time there were more than 1,000 was March 22 when there were 1,001.

It’s worth noting that the data does not detail whether those patients were hospitalized for COVID-19 or whether they were admitted with COVID-19 but hospitalized for something else.

The slight uptick in COVID-19 hospitalizations in Florida comes as the White House warns that 100 million people could get sick with COVID-19 in the fall.

It seems the prediction is part of a bigger pitch to persuade lawmakers to provide more funding for vaccines, testing, and treatment. If more funding is not secured, the White House says, supplies of antivirals and tests could run out by summer -- which, in return, could lead to millions of new infections.

The prediction also comes as the U.S. nears 1 million COVID-19 deaths.

“The main message for everyone is, if you’re staying up to date with your vaccine and boosters for the COVID-19 vaccine, you are going to be just fine,” said Chad Neilsen, UF Health Jacksonville director of infection prevention.

But Neilsen says it’s important to remember COVID-19 has not gone away.

”Jacksonville itself has an almost 9% positivity rate, which is about triple where it was just a couple months ago. We are seeing cases steadily rise, but it’s not driving hospitalizations because there’s so much immunity out there in the public, but that immunity we know will wane, which is why boosters are important,” Neilsen said. “Like the flu vaccine, we could see waves of this, but you won’t be as harshly affected if you’re vaccinated.”

That’s why a wave of new infections come fall is not out of the question but, in the end, only a prediction at this point.

Neilsen says it’s also important to remember this is only a prediction based on the variants currently out there.

Copyright 2022 by WJXT News4JAX - All rights reserved.

The Florida lacrosse program made the most of its role as host for the first and second rounds of the NCAA lacrosse tournament.

The Gators (17-5, 5-0 AAC) advanced to the quarterfinals with a 15-10 defeat of Jacksonville University Sunday at the Donald R. Dizney Stadium, marking UF’s 15th consecutive victory.

With the victory, the Gators set up a rematch with No. 2 Maryland following the Terrapins’ 19-6 defeat of Duke. Maryland claimed an 18-8 victory over UF on Feb. 26.

"I think it was a little bit different than the way we played on Friday," UF coach Amanda O'Leary said. "I thought we really stepped up, played hard, played well and got some draw controls early, got some goals early. It was great momentum."

Jacksonville (14-5, 5-0 ASUN) did start the game in better fashion than the Dolphins began the April 27 contest with UF, which ended in a 12-6 victory by Florida. After the Gators opened the scoring with a goal from Josie Hahn, JU’s Megan Prescott answered back with her 10th goal of the season.

Latest podcast:Local high school spring football and SEC softball highlighted in the GatorSports podcast.

Following the Dolphins’ 20-8 win over Stanford University Friday in the first round of the NCAA Tournament, JU coach Mindy McCord had emphasized the need for the Dolphins to play to their style against the Gators — something she felt Jacksonville had done in the second half of the initial matchup.

But the Dolphins quickly found themselves in a similar situation as the Gators proceeded to score four answered goals to take a 5-1 lead by the conclusion of the first quarter.

JU opened the second quarter with a pair of goals, trimming UF’s lead to 5-3, but the Gators responded with a run of four goals of their own to make it 9-3. Prescott snapped UF’s scoring streak with her second goal, which came with 2:52 to play until halftime, though Danielle Pavinelli reinstated Florida’s six-goal advantage just prior to halftime.

The Dolphins added four goals in the third quarter, though UF still held a 12-8 lead heading into the final 15 minutes of play after goals from Maggi Hall and Pavinelli.

Here are takeaways from the contest.

Defense steps up for UF

"I thought it was a testament to our defense to be able to squash those runs," O'Leary said of the Dolphins' late charge. "But also, for every time they went on a run we were able to respond offensively."

With each team’s season hanging in the balance, UF’s defense held the Dolphins to two goals in the decisive period while tallying three goals to send the Gators to Champaign, Illinois, as one of eight teams remaining in the NCAA tournament. UF goalkeeper Sarah Reznik recorded 12 saves on 22 shots by the Dolphins.

"I think that's we've come to expect from Sarah. I mean, she has lived up to every expectation and exceeded all expectations," O'Leary said. "I think she's not only just a dominant player on the field, but just such a leader in the locker room off the field. She's a really special player."

Danielle Pavinelli crosses triple-digit scoring mark

Leading goal-scorer Danielle Pavinelli continued her prolific sophomore season Sunday, She found the back of the net five times to give her 72 goals on the season and 102 on her career. Before getting credited with a goal of her own, Pavinelli assisted on a goal by Hall, which gave the Gators a 4-1 lead.

"What she's accomplished is due to all the hard work she puts in," O'Leary said of Pavinelli. "She comes to practice everyday prepared, ready to go and gives her best, and I think we're seeing all that of come to fruition out on the field."

Pavinelli attributed her scoring prowess to her teammates.

"I owe all of it to my teammates, I couldn't have done it without them. Them creating opportunities for me to score, it means so much to me," she said, "and every single person I play with on the field has done so much to get me here, and I really owe it all to them."

Jacksonville makes change in the net

Florida’s early lead led to a change in front of the net for the Dolphins.

Jacksonville substituted on Addy Tysdal for Paige Pagano after just 18 minutes of play after the Gators took a 7-3 lead at the top of the second quarter. Tysdal played the remaining 41:57 of the contest and held UF to eight goals while recording six saves to Pagano’s three.

It may not have led to a different result, but it was a sign the Dolphins weren’t willing to go down without a fight over the final two-thirds of the game.

Florida set for rematch

With the victory, the Gators are set for another battle with the highly touted Maryland Terrapins.

In the third game of the season, the Gators went on the road to College Park, Maryland, and suffered an 18-8 defeat, but Florida has thrived in the nearly three-month stretch since the loss to Maryland. The Gators have won 15 of their previous 17 games heading into the quarterfinals, and the game will occur at a neutral site rather than on the Terrapins’ home field.

With those factors in mind, Florida likes its chances in the rematch.

"They're the No. 2 team in the country for a reason. They're solid at both ends of the field, through the midfield, but I like our chances," O'Leary said. "We are much better than we were when we played them the first time. They probably also have improved as well, but I'm excited to take this group up there and see what we can do."

Shoppers only have to wait a couple more weeks before they can roam the aisles of the new Marshalls department store opening at St. Johns Town Center.

The nationwide apparel, home fashion and beauty retailer plans to open on May 22 at 10261 River Marsh Drive, the company posted on its website.

The store replaces the former Staples, which closed permanently on July 23 last year. Located on the northern end of the sprawling retail center near Target, the office supply store opened in 2005 as one of the original tenants of the Town Center.

With the opening of the Town Center location, Marshalls will have eight stores in Northeast Florida, including three in Jacksonville, and one each in Orange Park, Jacksonville Beach, St. Augustine and Palatka, the company website shows.

Marshalls is among several new stores already open or coming soon to the shopping center on Jacksonville's Southside.

Latest news: For more retail and restaurant news, download the Times-Union app today

Restaurants: What's new or coming soon to Town Center and Southside neighborhoods

Open now at Town Center

Free People Movement: 4818 St. Johns Town Center, Suite 107. The performance-ready activewear clothing store opened May 5 and is located near Vans.

Fresh Mex & Co: 10281 Midtown Parkway. The restaurant is a New York-inspired urban grill and cantina offers a chef-driven menu. It's located near Kilwin's Ice Cream.

NIU Scooters: 10281 Midtown Parkway Suite 12. The company bills itself as the world's leading lithium-powered electric two-wheeler company. It's located next to Jones & Rose.

Sola Salon Studios: 10261 River Marsh Drive. Located next to Old Navy, the business provides salon professionals with "high-end fully-equipped salon studios, along with the support and tools needed."

AO Fragrances: 4818 River City Drive. A boutique home fragrance company based in St. Augustine. The chandlery at Town Center opened on April 29 and is located between RH and Nordstrom.

Coming soon to Town Center

Blo Blow Dry Bar: Plans to open in mid-2022 in Town Center's "self-care zone" which includes other wellness services. The blow dry salon is billed as North America's original blow dry bar. It allows customers — called Hair Cadets — to choose from seven styles. It only washes and blow-dries hair.

Altar’d State, Arula and Vow’d: The women's clothing store plans to open at 4712 River City Drive No. 131 late this year near Victoria's Secret. The store is moving from its original Town Center location and expanding to include two new stores to serve plus sizes and a bridal wear line.

Offline by Aerie: The lifestyle brand plans to open late this year near Banana Republic, at 4711 River City Drive Suite 131. It offers women's intimates, apparel, activewear and swim collections.

UF Health doctor says vaccinations are still best source of protection

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – For the first time since the pandemic began, one local hospital group has lifted its mask mandates in parts of its buildings. It’s happening as the average number of reported COVID cases are on the rise in Florida.

The state is now averaging nearly 3,300 cases a day. The graph below shows the number of cases reported to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention over the last 30 days.

Hundreds of health professionals in all five Baptist hospitals no longer have to wear masks in non-clinical areas, like meeting rooms and administrative areas. News4JAX spoke with experts at UF Health on Monday about the recent uptick in local cases and how the BA.2 variant compares to omicron and delta.

BA.2 has now become the most dominant COVID infection in the state of Florida, according to local doctors. The state’s positivity rate is up to 6.1% — the highest it has been since February.

We asked Chad Neilsen, UF Health’s director of infection prevention, about the differences between the three variants.

“What we know about BA.2 is it’s very similar to the omicron, it’s original variant, that it’s less severe for most individuals versus delta or even the very first wave of COVID that we saw,” Neilsen said. “Right now, the delta variant — that was really our most catastrophic and most severe variant of COVID that we’ve seen throughout this pandemic, and omicron in this BA.2 variant just hasn’t lived up to that, thankfully.”

Neilsen said there is still a risk that people can end up hospitalized by the BA.2 variant, but that’s most likely in individuals who are not vaccinated or who have other underlying medical conditions. Neilsen said the BA.2 variant is more contagious than its predecessors.

What doctors can’t quantify, however, is how many Floridians are testing positive at home.

“We know that at home testing has varied throughout the pandemic. But right now, we don’t capture as many people because testing sites are shut down and at home testing has kind of lagged in terms of people’s attitudes towards it,” Nelisen said.

While the BA.2 variant’s symptoms are less severe, Neilsen warns the next mutation has the possibility of being more harmful. Like many in the state of Florida, Neilsen said, local health officials also have COVID-19 fatigue, but adds vaccination is still the best protection.

“We know the masking mandates across the country are starting to either ebb this way, or here in the state of Florida, largely, we have no mandates,” Neilsen said. “And I think that’s OK as long as people are taking those simple steps and getting vaccinated.”

News4JAX checked with UF Health, St. Vincent’s, Baptist Health and Wolfson Children’s Hospital on Monday. Combined, in all of those hospitals, 25 people were hospitalized with COVID-19.

Copyright 2022 by WJXT News4Jax - All rights reserved.

The Florida High School Athletic Association begins the third round of high school baseball playoffs across Jacksonville and Northeast Florida, the last step before the final four.

In 2022, playoffs are staggered across different days and different classes, leading to a span of more than a week of state championships from May 18-21 and May 23-25 at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

Bolles, Fleming Island and St. Johns Country Day reached the final four from Northeast Florida last year. Playing schedules are subject to change.

Regional finals

7 p.m. Tuesday unless noted

REGION 1-7A

Oviedo Hagerty (16-11) at Bartram Trail (21-8)

This is Bartram Trail's first regional final since 2015, when they defeated Oakleaf on a march that ultimately led to the title game against Venice. When the Bears are playing like this, they're tough for anyone in the Sunshine State to stop. Alex Lodise, Kolt Myers and Justin Nadeau all went deep Friday night to beat Apopka, and pitching is coming through as well: In their last 11 games, only St. Johns Country Day has scored more than three runs against the Bears. Hagerty is hot as well, winning six straight, and has a UCF-bound ace in Garrett Baumann (5-2, 1.48). The winner plays in the state semifinal Friday at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

How they got here:Bartram goes deep, Fort White in final four

REGION 1-4A

Bishop Kenny (21-6) at Suwannee (23-4)

Bishop Kenny has won its last 12. Suwannee has racked up 14 straight victories. One of those streaks ends Tuesday night in Live Oak. There's serious power in the lineup for the Bulldogs, who include six players with multiple home runs, led by Peyton Waters with five. Sophomore Camdon Frier might be among Northeast Florida's hottest players, with a seven-game hitting streak and a .538 batting average in that span. Andrew Tabor and Joshmar Carbonell ignite the top of the order for Bishop Kenny, which last qualified for the final four in 2008. The Crusaders have won five of the games in their winning streak by one or two runs. The winner heads to Fort Myers for a state semifinal on May 23.

REGION 1-3A

Fernandina Beach (16-9) at The Villages Charter (19-7)

The Pirates and the Buffalo were the last two teams into the Region 1-3A playoffs, but one of them will be final four-bound. Fernandina Beach, in its first regional final since 2006 and seeking its first final four visit since 2003, is finding new power: The Pirates hit only three home runs in the regular season, but both Sean Benjamin and Jamieson Keith went deep against Ocala Trinity Catholic. Sophomore Caden Hartman is up to nine doubles. For The Villages, the game plan relies on pitching and defense, with a team ERA of 1.84 and a total of four runs allowed in May. The winner moves on to the state semifinals at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers, scheduled for May 24.

REGION 1-2A

Tallahassee North Florida Christian (20-5) at St. Johns Country Day (23-4)

Only NFC, winner of four FHSAA titles, stands between the Spartans and a return trip to the final four. The bats are booming for the Spartans, including five combined RBI from Jordan Taylor and Tyce Moore in Saturday's 12-5 win over Trinity. St. Johns shut out NFC 4-0 at the same stage last spring on a combined shutout from Bradley Hodges and Finn Howell. But NFC can never be counted out. They demonstrated that again last week by fighting from six runs down to beat University Christian 8-6 in Saturday's regional semifinal, thanks to four RBI from Joshua Schuchts. The winner qualifies for a state semifinal on May 23 in Fort Myers.

Clayton Freeman covers high school sports and more for the Florida Times-Union. Follow him on Twitter at @CFreemanJAX.