TENNIS

Betsy Reedy-Sawyer, Class of 1986, was an outstanding tennis player for the Vikings throughout her high school career. She played tennis all four years during her time at Lakeside and helped lead the Vikings to their first and only girls tennis state title in 1984. Her efforts on the court elevated her enough to earn the honor of being the state’s top-ranked player in doubles alongside her partner, Leeanne Duckworth. Sawyer was also on the Vikings cheerleading squad for three years. After graduating from Lakeside, Sawyer attended the Georgia Institute of Technology where she received a degree in Industrial Management. Following her time as a Yellow Jacket, she continued her education at Georgia State University, where she would earn a master’s degree in Sports Management. After starting a career working in the sports management industry, Sawyer started a family, including her four children Tyler, Eli, Sidney and Paige. She currently lives in Brookhaven with her husband Ryan and considers her family to be her life’s greatest accomplishment. Though her days on the Vikings tennis team are over, Sawyer still finds time to play on the tennis courts as often as she can. She is an active member of ALTA tennis, and to this day is still competing against her former Lakeside teammate and Hall of Famer, Lianna Bebeau.

Jim Duckworth, Class of 1982, was a prolific tennis player for the Vikings. He led Lakeside to three-straight team tennis state championships (1980-82) and won back-to-back doubles state titles (1980-81) with fellow Hall of Famer Chuck Sobers. He was ranked the No. 12 player in the South in 1982 after compiling an outstanding 43-1 varsity record. Duckworth’s career at Lakeside led him to sign a scholarship to play at Ole Miss along with Sobers. Prior to his four-year career with the Rebels, he participated in the 1982 National City Team Championships and was invited to play in the Olympic Trials held in Flushing Meadows, New York for the 1984 Summer Olympics. During the National City Championships in Dallas, Texas, Duckworth teamed up with Sobers to take on the countries’ top talent. They would go on to win the championship without dropping a single match—defeating a field that represented seven other major cities from around the country. The two Lakeside products paired up again at Ole Miss and defeated Georgia in their first collegiate match. Duckworth is married to Marcy and they have a son Trace and daughter Mary Elaina. His father Ed, who passed away in February, 2022 at the age of 85, was a Clemson alumnus and pioneer that oversaw the creation of the Duckworth Family Tennis Facility at Clemson with his wife Jane.

Chuck Sobers, Class of 1982, was a prolific tennis player for the Vikings throughout his high school career. He won the singles and doubles championship three times under legendary head coach Wayman Creel, and was the top-ranked player in the state as a senior in 1982. His doubles partner was fellow Hall of Famer Jim Duckworth. As a senior, Sobers won the 1982 National Sugar Bowl. Following his graduation from Lakeside, Sobers continued his education at Ole Miss, joining Duckworth in Oxford. As a Rebel, he was an SEC champion in 1983 and was All-SEC in 1983 and 1984. He was ranked within the nation’s top 100 players during all four years at Ole Miss and was a finalist in the 1984 Olympic Trials. Sobers was also a seven-time Georgia Open finalist in doubles and mixed, winning each of the seven years. Altogether, Sobers won over 150 tennis events throughout his career, including the 1983 Junior Davis Cup in New York and the National City team championship in Dallas, Texas in 1982. After school, he acted as a tennis director, car broker and owned a car wash. Sobers went on to have a wonderful family and is a six-time winner of the Lakeside Masters Golf Tournament that is played in August every year. He owes everything to his parents, Walter and Kay, as well as his aunt Mary Margaret Carr.