Juneau Empire newsroom staffers recently took home seven awards for its work in 2018 from the Alaska Press Club Awards contest in Anchorage.

Staff photographer Michael Penn won two first-place awards for his photographs, for best feature photo and best sports photo.

Reporter Alex McCarthy won three third-place awards, for best general news reporting, best breaking news story and best culture reporting.

Reporter Ben Hohenstatt won a second-place award for best headline writing, and Angelo Saggiomo third place for best page layout and design.

“The Empire may not be the biggest newsroom in the state, but we certainly are the hardest working. Each day, I am inspired by the talent, drive and dedication of the news team, their courage and their heart. Congratulations to them, for these well deserved awards,” Empire Editor Emily Russo Miller said.

You can read and see the award-winning work in full below.

The Juneau Empire and Capital City Weekly’s Alaska Press Club awards for 2018:

Alex McCarthy

Best General News Reporting (Print-Large), third place: “Doing the Dip: Polar Bear Dip gets 2018 off to a chilling, thrilling start”

Best Breaking News Story (Print-Small, Print-Large), third place: “Pet cremator cited for leaving dead animals out, attracting bears”

“Dead pets, marauding bears, and a local reporter’s serendipitous news break. This is an ‘only in Alaska’ story.” — Judge’s comment

Best Culture Reporting (Print-Large), third place: “Alaska’s petroglyphs & lessons that span an ocean: Alaska Natives, Native Hawaiians learn from each other on environmental topics”

Michael Penn

Best Feature Photo (Large) (Television, Radio, Print-Large), first place: “Polar Dip”

“A great layering of human reaction from a yearly event. Nicely done in selecting a frame with a variety of people and expressions in it.” — Judge’s comment

Best Sports Photo (Large) (Television, Radio, Print-Large), first place: “Basketball”

“Liked the wave of players diving for the ball. This more unusual moment sent it to the top.” — Judge’s comment

Ben Hohenstatt

Best Headline Writing (Television, Radio, Print-Large), second place: “5 Headlines by Ben Hohenstatt”

Here are the five headlines:

1. The life of brine: Fermentation 101 spreads passion for fermented foods
2. Gingerbread raises dough for nonprofits
3. Hope uke like jamming too
4. Simple as 1-2-3: 3 school board candidates fill 3 openings
5. Train-ing day at Juneau-Douglas City Museum

Angelo Saggiomo

Best Page Layout & Design (Print-Small, Print-Large), third place: “Whale Worth the Wait”