The Union Mudturtles capped off a superb summer of 7s with two Empire 7s wins, the Hell’s Gate, and, this past weekend, the Blazin’ 7s in Morris Plains, NJ.

The Mudturtles beat Greenwich in the final 26-19, coming back form a 19-0 first-half deficit to score four tries in the second half. 

Greenwich  defeated Doylestown 40-5 and Bergen 38-7 in pool play before downing play Rugby USA 47-7 in the semifinals.

Jack Freiheit scored seven tries on the day, with Will Beney adding six and Bryce Stanback four.

It looked like it would be Greenwich’s day all day in the final as they scored three tries in the first half. But after a talk with their coach, the Union players started to make adjustments. Mike Dabulas, off to Penn State this fall, started lofting high kicks that Kevin Trotter ran under to win. Getting some possession in the Greenwich end, and with Chris Bortuzzi back from injury and playing well, the Mudturtles turned it around.

It was a good summer for both finalists. Union won four tournaments, while Greenwich went 20-5 in 7s, winning one tournament and making the top three four times in their five tournaments. Freiheit, off to University of Colorado in the fall, led the team with 45 tries in 7s, to go with 33 tries in 15s.