The Raptors picked up a convincing 66-10 victory over OMBAC on Saturday afternoon to kick off their 2022 spring campaign.
The win marked the first action for the Raptors since the conclusion of their tour of Uruguay in November. The Raptors split their two matches against Uruguay A on the tour, winning the first match 68-27 and narrowly dropping the second match 32-29.
Saturday’s 56 point win also marked the club’s first victory under new head coach Paul Emerick. As one of the great Eagles to grace the pitch for USA Rugby and a crossover athlete himself, Emerick was hired in December to steer this team of elite crossover athletes into the future.
The Raptors will play three more matches on the road throughout March and April. They will head to Hayward, California on Saturday, March 26 to take on Life West before returning home for a week off. They will then head back to California for a match with the LA Giltinis Academy in the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum on Sunday, April 10. The Raptors will then finish up their three-match road trip with a contest against Seattle RFC in the Pacific Northwest on Saturday, April 16.
The first chance to see the Raptors at Infinity Park in 2022 will take place on Saturday, May 7 against the Chicago Area Rugby Football Union. Following that match, The Raptors will then head north of the border to take on the Canada West All-Stars – an Under-25 team coached by former Seattle Seawolves player-coach Phil Mack – in Langford, British Columbia on Saturday, May 14.
After a quick jaunt up to Canada, the Raptors return to Infinity Park to close out the month of May with matches against Life West and the Giltinis Academy on May 21 and 28, respectively.
While this will be the second season that the Raptors will be back in action, it will be the third season of crossover rugby in Glendale. The Colorado XOs – the moniker that the Raptors played under in spring 2021 – finished the season 5-5 before returning to the Raptors brand in the fall.
Spring 2022 will not be the first time that the crossovers face Seattle RFC and the LA Giltinis Academy. The Raptors defeated Seattle 78-10 in October. As the XOs, the club fell 33-31 to the LA Giltinis Academy in the first-ever meeting between the two organizations.
Since the crossover initiative started, the club has posted a 2-3 record against Major League Rugby academy sides with wins over Pathway 404 and the Utah Warriors Selects, and losses to the LA Giltinis Academy, Rugby HTX, and the AG Outlaws.
All three of the Raptors’ home matches at Infinity Park in May will be free and open to the public.
For more information regarding the American Raptors spring 2022 schedule, visit AmericanRaptors.com/schedule-and-tickets.