The Kansas City Star and Wichita Eagle took home a combined 11 Associated Press Sports Editors honors this week in Las Vegas.
The Star’s digital sports coverage at kansascity.com garnered Top 10 national recognition, as did work from numerous sports journalists representing The Star and Eagle.
The annual APSE awards have been described as sports media’s version of the Emmys. Here is a rundown of this year’s Top 10 honorees:
Vahe Gregorian earned Top 10 in Column Writing. His four-part submission included pieces on: a Kansas family’s Wiffle Ball fundraiser for mental health; a famous artist’s missing Chiefs painting; Jim Tyrer’s Pro Football Hall of Fame candidacy; and how anti-DEI backlash is warping the Mizzou scholarship awarded in memory of Terez A. Paylor.
Gregorian also teamed with fellow sports columnist Sam McDowell, Chiefs beat reporter Blair Kerkhoff and KC Star news reporters Kacen Bayless and Matthew Kelly for award-winning coverage of the Chiefs’ announcement that the team’s new stadium will be built in Kansas, not Missouri.
Individually, McDowell also won a Breaking News Top 10 for his story on the bullet that pierced the Arrowhead office of Kansas City Chiefs head coach Andy Reid.
Star photographer Tammy Ljungblad won in Feature Photo for her image of Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes sharing a pre-game kiss with wife Brittany, surrounded by the couple’s three young children.
Former Star Chiefs beat writer Jesse Newell, now with The Athletic, won in the Explanatory category for his KC Star story detailing how Reid and now-former offensive coordinator Matt Nagy called plays on offense.
In Wichita, reporter Taylor Eldridge — who covers Wichita State Shockers sports as well as area high school and community-sports highlights — claimed four APSE Top 10 awards. He placed for Beat Reporting (coverage of WSU); Long Feature; Short Feature; and Breaking News.
Eagle colleagues Kellis Robinett and Travis Heying also earned Top 10s — Robinett for Beat Reporting on the Kansas State Wildcats, Heying for Action Photo.
The Star’s Top 10 for Digital coverage was a team effort. Entries were judged, according to APSE, “on how well your staff uses digital tools, on and off platform, to tell stories and engage readers.”
All APSE awards will be handed out at the organization’s annual summer conference.