MILL CREEK — Jackson is no longer the new high school on the block.
Celebrating 30 years as the Everett School District’s third high school, Jackson honored former athletes on Jan. 17 by inducting an inaugural class into an Athletic Hall of Fame.
Selected by a committee of Jackson’s staff, eight Timberwolves greats, two coaches, a special contributor and one team were introduced at a ceremony in the school’s gym between boys and girls basketball games.
Former Major League Baseball player Travis Snider, a member of his alma mater’s inaugural HOF class as an individual and part of the 2006 Jackson state championship baseball team, said the school still felt new when he was a freshman in 2002.
“Coming back here now, there’s a lot of nostalgia,” said Snider, who was selected 14th overall in the 2006 Major League Baseball draft. “All the student-athletes, a lot of academic awards out there. … We’re really proud of the community and how things have transpired.”
Snider moved back to the Mill Creek area shortly after retiring from baseball in 2015 and now owns 3A Athletics, an organization focused on athlete mental health.
“It was a great experience here playing sports, and all the relationships with the coaches and the staff,” Snider said. “Being able to come back here and pay tribute to that is really special.”
Alan Briggs, coach of the 2006 state-champion baseball team, jogs through the balloon arch at an Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony at Jackson High School in Mill Creek on Jan. 17. (Aaron Coe / The Herald)
The 2006 baseball team, featuring a number of players who went on to play beyond high school, went 27-0 and finished the season ranked second in the nation. After the 2005 team finished third at state, head coach Alan Briggs said the team entered the 2006 season “laser-focused” with Snider as a leader. He feels it’s the greatest baseball team in state history.
“I really believe this is probably the best assembled by the numbers and how they dominated,” said Briggs, whose team outscored opponents 61-6 in seven postseason games. “It would be tough to see any team come out of the woodwork, any year, and play these guys in a three-game set and beat them.”
Snider, also an impact football player, spent time on the gridiron with legendary Timberwolves running back Johnie Kirton. A 6-foot-3, 250-pound powerhouse with breakaway speed, Kirton’s 2,675 rushing yards during the 2003 season came just a yard shy of breaking the state’s single-season record.
Kirton, who passed away in 2016, was represented at the Hall of Fame ceremony by his parents, Doug and Heather Kirton.
“One of the things when someone passes is being able to keep their memory alive,” Heather Kirton said. “So for us, it’s just really nice to have this community around us again and be able to see all the people who loved and cared for him like we did — and for his accomplishments to be honored.”
Dustin Duke, Jackson’s first-ever state champion, walks through the balloon arch at an Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony at Jackson High School in Mill Creek on Jan. 17. (Aaron Coe / The Herald)
Jackson’s inaugural class includes:
Dustin Duke (1999 graduate)
Cross country and track
Duke was the first Jackson athlete to qualify for state, as well as the first to win league, district and state titles. A seven-time state placer, Duke won two state cross country championships and the mile race at a state track meet.
Johnie Kirton (2004)
Football, basketball and track
Kirton rushed for 2,675 yards in 2003 and was named The Herald’s All-Area Player of the Year as well as the Gatorade state player of the year. He came just one yard shy of breaking the state’s single-season rushing record in 2003 despite rarely playing in the fourth quarter of games. Kirton went on to play at the University of Washington and in the Arena Football League.
Travis Snider (2006)
Baseball, football
Snider was an offensive force on a 2006 baseball team that was also inducted into the Jackson HOF. Snider played eight Major League Baseball seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays, Pittsburgh Pirates and Baltimore Orioles.
Kristi Kingma, carrying one of her children, walks through the balloon arch at an Athletic Hall of Fame ceremony at Jackson High School in Mill Creek on Jan. 17. (Aaron Coe / The Herald)
Kristi Kingma (2008)
Basketball, soccer, track
Kingma made 10 state appearances across three sports before playing college basketball at the University of Washington, where she still holds three scoring records. She set a single-game Class 4A scoring record of 43 points in 2007.
Jason Todd (2014)
Basketball, baseball
A two-time Herald Player of the Year and Washington state “Mr. Basketball” in 2014, Todd led the Timberwolves to state all four years — including runner-up and fourth-place finishes. Todd played college basketball at the University of Portland and California Baptist.
Nicole Limberg (2017)
Swimming
In three seasons, Limberg won five individual state swimming championships in addition to leading two Jackson relay teams to titles. The Timberwolves won a state championship in 2015. Limberg swam at Rice University.
Jon Cook (2018)
Swimming
Cook won six state titles, including consecutive championships in the 100-yard breaststroke and 200 individual medley, setting Class 4A state meet records in each event. Cook continued his swimming career at Stanford.
Iyanla De Jesus (2019)
Softball
“Ice,” an All-Wesco player all four seasons and a Herald All-Area Player of the Year, led the Timberwolves to back-to-back state titles with standout pitching and hitting. During her junior season, De Jesus went 22-1 in the pitching circle, posting a 0.35 earned run average and striking out 282 batters in 139 innings pitched. She also batted .507 with eight home runs and 28 RBI. De Jesus, a Gatorade player of the year, pitched at Coastal Carolina University.
Jackson Baseball Team, 2006
The state champions, led by coach Alan Briggs, went 27-0, outscoring opponents 232-34 — including 61-6 in seven postseason games. The Timberwolves hit 33 home runs and batted .410 while the pitching staff compiled a 0.95 ERA with 205 strikeouts. The 2006 team, ranked second in the nation by Baseball America, was inducted into the Snohomish County Sports Hall of Fame in 2024.
Judi Montgomery
Tennis coach
Montgomery coached girls tennis for every year Jackson was open prior to retiring in 2024. Timberwolves tennis players went to state every year Montgomery was a coach.
Eric Hrushka
Cross country and track coach
Hrushka, a coach at Jackson since its opening, has led 28 cross country teams to state, and four of his runners won individual state champions. In track, Hrushka’s athletes have placed at state 74 times, including six champs.
John Arevelo
Special contributor
Arevela has been a custodian at Jackson during its entire existence. “He’s the keeper of the gym, making sure that everything was prepped and in tip-top shape through all the great years of volleyball, girls and boys basketball and girls and boys wrestling,” said PA announcer Dan Mills during the ceremony.
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