Last season, the Chillicothe Swarm’s first in the ranks of Midwest semi-pro football, the upstart Swarm lost to the Omaha Stockmen by a final score of 69-8. While Saturday afternoon’s performance did not result in the Swarm’s second victory of 2018, it did give the team proof that the addition of depth and talent to the roster this off-season is paying dividends.
Special teams and offensive line struggles, and two costly third quarter fumbles, cost Chillicothe in a 47-8 loss to Omaha at Jerry Litton Memorial Stadium. The first quarter saw Chillicothe’s struggles from the punting game, as the combination of poor blocking and timing issues combined to force a boot off the side of the foot. With the ball hit only 20 yards to midfield, Omaha’s Martell Harris, with mountains of room up the west sideline, went in untouched for the first score of the game. Two pass completions from quarterback Swensen (43 yards to Greer and 11 yards to Lewis) made the score 21-0 after one quarter.
The second quarter was much more solid for the Swarm, as Chillicothe got on the board on a 28 yard deflected pass, caught by Pake Croy in the end zone with 5:11 remaining in the half, with the two-point conversion pass to Croy cutting Omaha’s halftime lead to 21-8.
The third quarter saw Chillicothe turn over the ball, via fumble, twice in Swarm territory, with Omaha scoring twice to extend the advantage (both PAT’s failed). In the fourth quarter, a 55 yard interception return for touchdown by Harris, and a 25 yard scoring strike from Swenson to Lewis, with 23.9 seconds remaining, completed the scoring.
The win improves Omaha to 1-0 on the season (1-0 in Midwest Football Alliance play), while the Swarm tips to 1-1 overall, and 0-1 in league play. Chillicothe will host the Midwest Titans this Saturday night at 7 o’clock, although the host facility is not yet known. Litton Stadium is scheduled to host district soccer on Saturday, with there being a possibility that the Swarm/Titans game could move to Burlington Field in Brookfield.
