Boulieris Claims Singles Title At ITA Summer Circuit Event

July 22, 2008

Kalamazoo, Mich. -

Marquette University's Niko Boulieris claimed the singles title at the Intercollegiate Tennis Association Summer Circuit event Monday evening, an event hosted by Western Michigan University in Kalamazoo, Mich.

Boulieris, who will be a junior in 2008-09, posted a pair of back-to-back wins on Monday to secure the title. The tourney, which began on Saturday, was delayed over the course of the weekend because of rain.

"Niko is a guy who takes the summer months very seriously," head coach Steve Rodecap said. "He has been working very hard and it was nice for him to get a win like this under his belt, especially with the quality field he competed against."

After posting a victory over Daniel Stahl of Notre Dame in the semifinals, Boulieris immediately matched up with Andrew Gauthier of Cornell and earned a 7-4, 7-6 decision to secure the championship. The Lake Forest, Ill., native collected a total of six wins on the weekend, including three over BIG EAST Conference opponents. Along with Stahl, he also downed John Drosick (Villanova) and Ben Hartman (DePaul).

Boulieris was also selected as the recipient for the event's sportsmanship award. His bid for a pair of titles fell just short, however, as he and fellow MU player Mark Rutherford were defeated in the semifinals of the doubles draw.

The circuit stop in Kalamazoo was the third of four planned for the ITA Midwest Region. Indiana University will host the final tournament July 26-29.