The staff of the Bainbridge Island Review picked up more than a dozen awards in this year’s competition for Washington state’s best newspapers.

The Review won top awards — taking first place eight times — in advertising, news writing, feature writing, photography, page design and specialty publications.

Marleen Martinez and Raquee Rivera were presented with the first-place title for best branding ad, for an Imagine Coldwell Banker advertisement, and the pair won the second place award in the same category for a spring-themed placement for Coldwell Banker.

Martinez and Rivera also brought home first-place honors in color advertising (½ page or larger) for Marie Bennett of Coldwell Banker.

Also, Martinez and Rivera won second place for single advertiser (sale/event) for their ad, “At the Traveler,” as well as a third place in the same category for a promotion for Leah Applewhite Sotheby’s Realty.

Luciano Marano won the top prize in lifestyle feature stories — and third place in the category, as well — for “Speaking of Bigfoot,” an interloper’s look at Kitsap’s first Bigfoot symposium, and “A Feast of Fright,” where the Review reporter bit off more than he could chew during a taste testing of Burger King’s “Nightmare King” sandwich.

“The story is full of wit and kept me engaged from beginning to end,” the judges said of “Speaking of Bigfoot.”

“A story about a Bigfoot convention could have easily turned into a one-note story, but the author went beyond the convention to explore what draws people to the cryptic beast.”

On “Feast of Fright,” the judges noted: “This author knows how to write and write well. The story is entertaining and humorous.”

Marano was also awarded with second place in personality profile stories (long) for his interview account with Mary Richardson, a World War II U.S. Marine Corps veteran who was celebrating her 99th birthday.

He also claimed third place in general features (short) for his piece on last year’s Scotch Broom Festival.

The Review’s Brian Kelly won first place in government reporting, with judges praising his coverage of ethics complaints involving Bainbridge city officials.

Kelly also won first place in the crime-and-court category for his behind-the-scenes, tick-tock account on the fatal police shooting in the Eagle Harbor gunman scare.

“Very good story!” the judges noted. “Very well written and well researched. It draws a reader in from beginning to end with detailed information about an intense standoff.”

Kelly also won a first-place award for front page newspaper design.

In photography, both Marano and Kelly were honored for their work.

Marano claimed first place in general news photography for his shooting during last year’s “snowpocalypse.”

Marano won second place, as well, in the feature/portrait/pictorial category with a fog-soaked image of the Point White Pier.

Kelly brought home another first-place award in the color feature photography category, for his photo of islanders playing petanque outside the Bainbridge Island Senior Center.

Marano and Kelly were also part of the creative team that won first place in specialty publications that focus on the festival season.

“’Tis the Season,” a Christmas holiday guide written and produced by staff of the Review and its sister paper in Poulsbo, the North Kitsap Herald, was first in the category among all Washington newspapers. Joining Kelly and Marano in the honors were Bryon Kempf, Rivera, Nick Twietmeyer and Bob Smith.

The team of Marano, Kelly, Kempf, Rivera, Twietmeyer and Smith was also honored for Discover Kitsap (the region’s annual tourism guide), second-place winner for best tourism section.

Awards for the Washington Newspaper Publisher Association’s 2019 Better Newspaper Contest were presented during the group’s 132nd annual meeting, held Oct. 10 through Oct. 12 in Olympia.

This year’s competition was judged by the North Carolina Press Association.

Officials said 58 newspapers across Washington competed in the contest, with a total of 1,889 entries.