Hazelwood adds two more Ohio SPJ awards

COLUMBUS — Reflector Sports Editor Mark Hazelwood earned multiple awards for a third time in four years in Ohio's Best Journalism contest. Sponsored by the Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus Society of Professional Journalists chapters statewide, Hazelwood took second place in the Best Sports Reporting award for circulation print newspapers of 60,000 or less. His content on the Paul Brown statue unveil in October 2023 is second place in "Best of Show" for Best Special Section. Award winners were announced on July 3. Entries were for work done in 2023. Journalists who work for newspaper, magazines, radio, television, trade, online and college media in Ohio and adjacent states that have significant reach into Ohio were eligible to submit entries, as well as freelance journalists who are Ohio residents. The categories include large circulation print (60,000 or greater), small circulation print (fewer than 60,000), radio, television, digital media/freelance, trade organizations, and college. Competing in the same categories as media organizations in Cincinnati, Cleveland and Dayton, Hazelwood was recognized for three feature stories along with the Brown statue coverage. Those included stories on St. Paul girls basketball's Molly Ridge playing through injury; Norwalk soccer freshman scoring sensation Claire Spettle; and the relationship between NHS volleyball siblings, Mac and Sawyer Wineman. In his 19-year writing career — including the past seven at the Reflector — Hazelwood has earned 93 writing awards from the Associated Press, the Ohio SPJ and the Ohio Prep Sportswriters Association. He placed first in the SPJ contest in 2021 and 2023, and earned second in 2022 and 2024. On July 1, Hazelwood was announced as a finalist for five AP awards for stories in 2023. He will learn if his work secured a first-, second- or third-place finish at an awards banquet on July 21 in Columbus. Ohio's Best Journalism is the only Ohio competition that honors journalists who fulfill the SPJ mission: defense of the First Amendment, support of literacy, resistance to censorship, advocacy for openness of public records and meetings, media self-criticism and community service. The SPJ is the nation's most broad-based journalism organization and has nearly 10,000 members. Journalists from Region 10, which includes Oregon, Washington, Alaska, Idaho and Montana, served as judges. The winners will be recognized in Cleveland on Aug. 24.