SARATOGA SPRINGS - At the 2026 New York Press Association Better Newspaper Contest, The Reporter earned a top honor for its sports photography, with photographer Benjamin Patton taking first place in Sports Feature Photo for his image capturing the emotion of a championship moment.
Patton’s award-winning photograph freezes a scene from the Unatego/Franklin/Gilbertsville-Mount Upton football team’s Section IV 8-man championship victory over Moravia on Nov. 14, 2025 - a 40–20 win that secured the program’s first sectional title since 2007.
In that game, Unatego/Franklin/GMU used a dominant rushing attack led by Josef Sargent and Zack Sousa, who combined for 350 yards and all six touchdowns, to pull away in the fourth quarter after a back-and-forth first half. The Spartans closed out the win with a decisive 20-point margin, sparking a celebration that became the focal point of Patton’s photograph.
The winning image, published by The Reporter, shows players receiving the Section IV plaque amid a jubilant postgame celebration - a moment that highlights both athletic achievement and community pride in a long-awaited championship return.
The recognition highlights the role of hyper-local journalism in documenting defining moments that might otherwise pass unrecorded, and the work of independent newsrooms that remain present on sidelines, in gyms, and on fields where local history is made.
