Press Democrat staff members win in Associated Press Sports Editors 2020 contest

Three Press Democrat staff members were recently recognized in the national Associated Press Sports Editors 2020 contest for journalists.

Photographers Kent Porter and Christopher Chung and columnist Kerry Benefield were recognized in the recently announced awards.

Porter won first place in the action photography contest for a photo of the 49ers’ Jimmie Ward from the NFC Championship Game in January 2020. He will receive a first-place plaque at the APSE banquet in Las Vegas on Aug. 18.

Chung placed sixth in the same action photography category. Porter also won a fifth-place award for a feature photo.

Benefield was honored in the columns contest for her local sports coverage. Her featured stories included columns about an SRJC swimmer, Montgomery High grad Sara Hall, Montgomery’s soccer team and a Sonoma County man’s reunion with former Golden State Warriors player Early Boykins.

The contest was judged by sports editors and journalists from across the country and recognized work published in 2020.

To read more about APSE winners, visit the contest website at apsportseditors.com.