STEUBENVILLE — Several members of the Herald-Star were recognized Sunday when the Ohio Associated Press Media Editors held its annual meeting and awards banquet.

The awards, which were presented at the Villa Milano Banquet and Conference Center in Columbus, recognized the best news and sports stories, feature stories, editorials, columns, graphics and photos published around the state during 2022.

Sports editor Andrew Grimm earned a second-place award for best sports columnist. Finishing first in the category was Sam Blackburn of the Zanesville Times Recorder, while Andy Baskin of the Cleveland Jewish News was third.

Grimm also earned a third-place award for best sports writer. Finishing first was Kurt Snyder of the Newark Advocate, and finishing second was Albert Grindle of The Medina Gazette.

Staff writer Linda Harris earned a third-place award in the best news writer category. Finishing first and second, respectively, were Eric Couch and Chris Crook of the Zanesville Times Recorder.

Executive Editor Ross Gallabrese earned a third-place award in the best editorial writer category. Finishing first was Ed Puskas of The (Ashtabula) Star Beacon, while finishing second was Benjamin Lanka of The (Newark) Advocate.

The newspaper staff was recognized for several bodies of work.

That included second place in the best public service category for “Progress 2022.” First place went to Erin Gardner of The (Celina) Daily Standard for “Water Safety,” while second place went to Michaela Sumner of The (Newark) Advocate for “Everyone should know CPR.”

“Prep Football 2022,” our annual football preview edition, finished in third place in best special sports section. Albert Grindle of The Medina Gazette took first place for “2022 Gazette Football Preview,” while Kurt Snyder and Dave Weidig of The (Newark) Advocate for “Newark Advocate Football Weekly” claimed second place.

And, “Football Xtra,” our weekly preview of the area’s high school football action, finished in second place in best sports enterprise. Tom Haines of The (Celina) Daily Standard finished first for “Vanishing Referees,” while Kurt Snyder of The (Newark) Advocate was third with “Umpire Shortage.”

Neenah Ellis of WYSO-FM was inducted into the Ohio APME Hall of Fame

The Herald-Star competes in Division II, which includes newspapers with a daily circulation between 8,000 and 11,999.