ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
ALVA Woodpeckers build home in Alva woman’s house You may have heard of squatters, but this woman is dealing with squawkers. Who needs a rooster to wake up when you have woodpeckers?
FORT MYERS Man claims he was trapped in a high-rise for 5 days A 77-year-old man wants justice after he claims he spent days trapped on the 24th floor of a high-rise apartment building.
PUNTA GORDA Charlotte Correctional prisoner arrested for death of another inmate State Attorney Amira Fox convened a grand jury, which decided to move forward with a case against a Charlotte Correctional inmate.
SANIBEL Construction near Dairy Queen eagle nest on Sanibel raises concerns While many eagle nests may be a bit difficult to see, one nest has always been a favorite for Sanibel residents and tourists.
The environmental effects of artificial sweeteners Experts are studying how the foods we eat affect the environment, especially after we flush our waste down the toilet.
Victim reacts to man exposing himself to her Ring camera You get a notification on your phone from your ring camera app that someone is at the door, only to find out it is someone exposing themselves. It’s the last thing victim Maria Kivi wanted or expected to see last week.
LEE COUNTY The art of capturing your eye and drawing you in How do you capture young, hip, trendy, fun, movers and shakers, all in a pose? We take you behind the scenes of a Gulfshore Life cover shoot.
FORT MYERS The lives of two SJC Boxers changed in the ring Two SJC Boxers, Mario Nunez and Arbon Kurtishi, help each other in the ring as each of them had their lives changed because of boxing.
FORT MYERS Chlamydia cases rising sharply in Lee County If you think about a crowded space- something with more than 250 people- if it’s in Lee county, statistically one person has chlamydia.
SANIBEL Sanibel resort day passes hope to get more business on the island A pass will allow vacationers to hang out at a Sanibel beach club for a day in hopes of drumming up some business.
Voting equipment tested ahead of Lee County elections Voting equipment is being tested in Lee County. This is to ensure all ballots are printed and counted correctly for the upcoming election.
Collier County teen assaulted after leaving party The teen has been charged and the sheriff’s office said they’re aware that many believe felony charges are in order, but under Florida law, there are very specific criteria that must be met for felony charges to be filed.
WINK weather team watching tropical wave over Atlantic Ocean The Weather Authority is watching a tropical disturbance over the Central Atlantic Ocean.
CAPE CORAL Cape Coral drug bust leads investigators to fake fentanyl, cash and guns Cape Coral man arrest on drug charges. Investigators said they found, guns, drugs, and more than $32,000 in Richard Riley’s home.
NAPLES Naples youth flag football team to compete in Ohio tournament This weekend, the Naples Lunatics Green will compete in the Superhero Sports tournament in Canton, Ohio.
Albert Ruiz (Photo via Linwood Ferguson/Captive Photons) PISCATAWAY, N.J. — Florida Gulf Coast University junior forward Albert Ruiz accomplished something Tuesday that no NCAA Division I soccer player is believed to have ever done. On Wednesday, he said it means nothing to him. Perhaps Ruiz’s humility has to do with the way Rutgers nearly came back to beat the Eagles after he scored three goals less than 10 minutes into FGCU’s 6-5 road win Tuesday. The NCAA doesn’t keep official tallies for fastest hat tricks, but the quickest on record to three goals in NCAA Division I history had been Steve Burks of Indiana, who had his trio of scores 11 minutes and 41 seconds into a 1973 game against Indiana State, FGCU spokesman Jason MacBain said. Ruiz scored his third goal just nine minutes and two seconds in. Albert Ruiz (Photo via Linwood Ferguson/Captive Photons) “This record doesn’t mean anything if we don’t do things at the end of the year, so I just did what I’m supposed to do,” Ruiz said. “And it doesn’t mean anything if we don’t make things happen at the NCAA tournament or the A-Sun tournament.” The 15th-ranked Eagles are already making their presence known as a national force. They’re the NCAA’s highest-scoring team, and Tuesday’s victory was FGCU’s seventh straight, tying them for the longest winning streak in the country. “We still have a lot of things to improve,” Ruiz said. “… I’m glad we got the win this way, because that makes us realize that we still have a lot of things to improve.” Ruiz scored his first two goals at the 5:42 and 8:24 marks. The three-minute, 20-second span between the trio of goals is the third-shortest amount of time it’s taken anyone in NCAA history to compile a hat trick, MacBain said. But what made Ruiz’s performance unique is that it came so quickly into the contest. Redshirt sophomore forward Arion Sobers-Assue followed with a score at the 9:21 mark, meaning the Eagles as a team scored three goals in 57 seconds. Only the 43 seconds that it took Syracuse to score three times against Fordham on Oct. 17, 1989 bettered that distinction. It didn’t take too much longer for FGCU to score its fifth goal, which came at the 16:16 mark from Sobers-Assue. “Everything looks easy now, but I remember in my freshman year between me and Arion, we had two goals between us,” Ruiz said. “Not two goals each. Two goals between us, and look at us now. It’s been two years of working hard, and now we’re getting the results I guess that we deserve.” Ruiz, who is tied for the national lead with 11 goals this season, said his career turned around when he delivered a poor performance in a fitness test after winter break his freshman year, prompting some frank talk from head coach Bob Butehorn. “He came to me and told me, ‘Hey, Albert, you have a really good scholarship. You need to know we have hope in you. They are really putting a decent amount of money on (you) to be able to come here, and you’re not being as professional as you’re supposed to be,'” Ruiz said. “And after this day, to be honest, my mindset just changed completely.” It’s Ruiz’s work ethic that’s made the difference, according to Butehorn. “His first year, he couldn’t buy goals,” Butehorn said. “Last year, he kind of got it going, and this year, just through his hard work and, really, determination, he gets some goals.” Ruiz went out after the 25th minute with soreness in his right knee that stemmed from an injury he suffered a week earlier against Florida Atlantic, but he said Wednesday that he’s optimistic about being 100 percent for FGCU’s next game Oct. 4 at Florida International. He was one of four players on the FGCU roster who were unavailable by game’s end because of injury or suspension. Once Ruiz exited, FGCU notched just one more goal, in the 71st minute, and Rutgers nearly rallied to win before the Eagles held on to run their record to 7-2-1.