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The Times wins five AP awards

COLUMBUS — The Marietta Times was awarded for its work in five Division I categories Sunday in the annual Ohio Associated Press Media Editors newspaper competition. The awards were handed out at the annual Ohio APME banquet in Columbus.

Reporter and copy editor Erin O’Neill won first place Graphics Artist; news editor Kate York won first place for Best Editorial Writer; sports writer Ron Johnston won first place for Best Sports Columnist; reporter Janelle Patterson won third place for Best Spot News Coverage; and The Times newsroom staff won second place for Best Enterprise Reporting with the series, “Hooked on Heroin”.

Sixty-seven daily newspapers submitted 2,084 entries in the contest, which featured news and sports stories, features, editorials, columns, graphics and photos from 2016.

General Excellence awards for 2016 went to The Columbus Dispatch, The Canton Repository, Sandusky Register, The (Newark) Advocate and The (Massillon) Independent.

The Columbus Dispatch won the First Amendment Award for outstanding accomplishments in pursuing freedom of information. The Columbus Dispatch won with its entry “The Columbus Dispatch’s Efforts to Gain Information about the Pike County Murders for the public.”

Entries were judged by editors from The Detroit (Michigan)News, Division V; Digital First Media, Pontiac, Michigan, Division IV; the Loveland (Colorado) Reporter-Herald and The Paducah (Kentucky) Sun, Division III; the San Angelo (Texas) Standard-Times and the Cadillac (Michigan) News, Division II; The News-Dispatch, Michigan City, Indiana and the Ludington (Michigan) Daily News, Division I.

The Associated Press is a not-for-profit news cooperative representing 1,400 newspapers and 5,000 broadcast stations in the United States.

Here is the list of winners in Division I, Newspapers with a daily circulation up to 7,999

General Excellence: 1, The (Massillon) Independent; 2, The (Fremont) News-Messenger; 3, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette.

Best Headline Writer: 1, Marty Greenstein, The (Massillon) Independent; 2, Tom Barr, Wilmington News Journal; 3, Victoria Dugger, The (Bowling Green) Sentinel-Tribune.

Best Business Writer: 1, Andrea Chaffin, The (London) Madison Press; 2, Debbie Rogers, The (Bowling Green) Sentinel-Tribune; 3, Joshua Keeran, Urbana Daily Citizen.

Best Columnist: 1, Belinda Paschal, Piqua Daily Call; 2, Gary Abernathy, Hillsboro Times-Gazette; 3, Beth Sergent, Gallipolis Daily Tribune.

Best Editorial Writer: 1, Kate York, The Marietta Times; 2, David Yonke, The (Fremont) News-Messenger; 3, Rob Weaver, The (Tiffin) Advertiser-Tribune.

Best Feature Writer: 1, Cecilia Fox, Troy Daily News; 2, Chris Balusik, Chillicothe Gazette; 3, Audrey Ingram, The (London) Madison Press.

Best Graphics Artist: 1, Erin O’Neill, The Marietta Times; 2, Kandi Thompson, The Ironton Tribune.

Best Sports Columnist: 1, Ron Johnston, The Marietta Times; 2, John Bombatch, Fairborn Daily Herald; 3, Robert McCurdy, The Marion Star.

Best Sports Feature Writer: 1, Joe Mitchin, The (Massillon) Independent; 2, Chris Easterling, The (Massillon) Independent; 3, Robert McCurdy, The Marion Star.

Best Sports Writer: 1, David Fong, Troy Daily News; 2, Tom Wilson, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette; 3, Brad Morris, Circleville Herald.

Best Photographer: 1, Molly Corfman, The (Fremont) News-Messenger; 2, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette; 3, Morgan Manns, The (Fostoria) Review Times.

Best News Writer: 1, Alex Aspacher, The (Bowling Green) Sentinel-Tribune; 2, Jennifer Bahney, Circleville Herald; 3, Spencer Remoquillo, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette.

Best Sports Enterprise: 1, John Bombatch, Xenia Daily Gazette, “Following Grace Norman Through the Olympics”; 2, Justin Miller, Urbana Daily Citizen, “#johnstrong: The Road to Recovery”; 3, Robert McCurdy, The Marion Star, “Remembering the Irish.”

Best Special Sports Section: 1, The (Massillon) Independent, “The Rivalry”; 2, The (Massillon) Independent, “High School Football Preview”; 3, Matthew Horn and Molly Corfman, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Fall Football Preview 2016.”

Best Daily Sports Section: 1, The (Massillon) Independent; 2, Josh Brown and David Fong, Troy Daily News; 3, Rob McCurdy, The Marion Star.

Best Illustration or Informational Graphic: 1, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Sheridan Sidewalks Sparse”; 2, Jess Grimm, Chillicothe Gazette, “Ross County’s Aces”; 3, Kandi Thompson, The Ironton Tribune, “Property Values.”

Best News Photo: 1, JD Pooley, The (Bowling Green) Sentinel-Tribune, “Woman’s Body Exhumed”; 2, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Fire Destroys Hideaway Hills Home”; 3, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Hundreds of Pigs Rescued from Crash.”

Best Feature Photo: 1, Molly Corfman, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Tae’s Story: 4-Year-Old Fights Brain Cancer”; 2, Jessica St. James, The Ironton Tribune, “Last Goodbye for Aaron Christian”; 3, Don Tate, Fairborn Daily Herald, “Air Show Takes Flight.”

Best Sports Photo: 1, Brad Morris, Circleville Herald, “Outright Champs”; 2, JD Pooley, The (Bowling Green) Sentinel-Tribune, “Safe at Home”; 3, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Falcons Clinch First League Title Since 1988.”

Best Photo Story: 1, Molly Corfman, Port Clinton News-Herald, “Tae’s Story: Four-Year-Old Fights Brain Cancer”; 2, Molly Corfman, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Heroin: Face of Addiction”; 3, Molly Corfman, Port Clinton News-Herald, “A Difficult Journey: Tae, 5, Fights Brain Cancer.”

Best Video: 1, Molly Corfman, Port Clinton News-Herald, “A Difficult Journey: Tae, 5, Fights Brain Cancer”; 2, Matthew Berry, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Horse Paints Way into Woman’s Heart”; 3, Molly Corfman, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Richie’s Story: From Heroin to Hope.”

Best Public Service: 1, Tom Barr and Matt Louallen, Wilmington News Journal, “Honor Flight Section”; 2, Michael Throne, Chillicothe Gazette, “A Community Intervention”; 3, Daniel Carson, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Homelessness in Sandusky County.”

Best Spot News Coverage: 1, Amy Knapp and Christina McCune, The (Massillon) Independent, “Wendy’s Fire”; 2, Daniel Carson, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Brother Stabs Brother in Argument”; 3, Janelle Patterson, The Marietta Times, “Downtown OD.”

Best Explanatory Reporting: 1, Daniel Carson, Port Clinton News-Herald, “Tae: The Little Soldier”; 2, The (Tiffin) Advertiser-Tribune, “Harm and Hope”; 3, Amy Knapp, The (Massillon) Independent, “Massillon City Schools Bond Issue.”

Best Enterprise Reporting: 1, Daniel Carson, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Heroin in Sandusky County”; 2, The Marietta Times, “Hooked: Heroin in the Valley”; 3, Daniel Carson, Port Clinton News-Herald, “World War II: In Their Own Words.”

Best Investigative Reporting: 1, Gary Abernathy, Hillsboro Times-Gazette, “The Mayor Drew Hastings Case”; 2, Spencer Remoquillo, Lancaster Eagle-Gazette, “Former Firefighter Speaks out on Firing”; 3, Daniel Carson, The (Fremont) News-Messenger, “Police Chiefs Angry at Overmyer.”

Best Full Page Design: 1, Marty Greenstein, The (Massillon) Independent; 2, Port Clinton News-Herald, “Godspeed, John Glenn”; 3, Chillicothe Gazette, “39 Dead.”

Best Digital Presence: 1, Chillicothe Gazette; 2, The (Massillon) Independent; 3, The (Fostoria) Review Times.

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