MATT HEISTAND/Arizona Daily Wildcat Junior center Dave Loftus checks a Colorado State opponent Saturday night at the Tucson Convention Center.

Call it a typical weekend of Icecats hockey.

They won a couple games, had a couple fights and a couple of rowdy fans were escorted out of the Tucson Convention Center by event security.

UA embarrassed Colorado State 11-0 Friday night, and fought its way - literally - to a 7-3 victory Saturday for the weekend sweep.

The series rekindled the physical rivalry between the two schools, and the chippy play led to several altercations that more closely resembled a game played at America West Arena than an American Collegiate Hockey Association battle.

Head coach Leo Golembiewski frowned upon the lack of discipline his team showed at times but was not surprised by the type of game an overmatched CSU squad attempted to play.

"Sticks were high all game. I thought that was a typical Colorado State/UA series," Golembiewski said. "Both Colorado teams have that reputation - you expect it's going to get chippy."

In Friday's blowout, senior Kyle Neary and junior Dave Loftus each assisted on the other's goal to open the scoring, and junior Matt Naylor followed by finding the net twice.

After Naylor completed his natural hat trick to open the second period, the Icecats finished the night with a five-goal third period, handing the Rams their worst defeat of the season.

Freshman Shawn Brooks and senior John Saunders added two goals each, while freshman Mickey Meehan found the net once while also handing out three assists.

Freshman Bryan Aronchick saved all 19 shots in the game for the lopsided victory.

The physical rematch on Saturday night featured several booming open-ice hits by both teams, and plenty of pugilism ensued after an opening period filled with 24 minutes of minor penalties, the Icecats found themselves ahead 3-2 in a much tighter contest than the night before.

Naylor and Neary stayed hot and found the net for UA, while freshman Nick Woods also slipped a goal past CSU goalie Aaron Geddis.

While the penalty calls decreased after the first period, the dirty play did not, as Naylor's fifth goal of the weekend was followed by a late check from Colorado State's Travis Burge.

Naylor apparently made a mental note of his offender as just over two minutes later he dropped the gloves with Burge, promptly removed his helmet and landed several shots to his opponent's jaw.

Much to the disappointment of Golembiewski, Naylor earned himself a game misconduct and a disqualification for the Icecats upcoming match-up with Michigan State.

"I thought the only major down of the night was Naylor," Golembiewski said. "He was selfish enough to fight and selfish enough to get a DQ. You've got to be in control enough to understand if you're not helping your team by overreacting."

As upset as the head coach was about UA's lack of discipline, he was equally excited about the play of freshman goaltender Rick Karasch. In his first start as an Icecat, Karasch stopped 28 of 31 shots, including several dazzling glove saves in the final period to keep his team on top.

Sophomore Andrew Fredricks, Neary and senior Tom Wood scored for the Icecats in the third period, while the other freshman goalie did the rest.

"I play against such a good team in practice, I felt ready for this," Karasch explained of his first career win. "Fighting with Bryan (Aronchick) for the top spot really helps me. It just pushes me harder every day. I came here to play, not to watch, so I'm glad to have my chances."

The increased physical play Saturday night was much to the delight of the Icecat faithful, and the raucous home crowd even found itself infuriating the referees. After a rubber chicken found its way onto the ice, a linesman had one feisty Icecat fan escorted out of the building by security.

The fan's ejection prompted an exodus of Icecat fans from section 120 in protest.

Once again, the "Madhouse on Main Street" lived up to its name.

When the smoke cleared, the Icecats (12-3-1) found themselves with two more victories on their trek to nationals.

"You have to give this Icecat team a lot of credit," Golembiewski said. "It was a sweep weekend - it's what we needed."