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Icecats pound helpless Skatin' Utes

Utah wasn't quite sure what it was getting into.

Before the Skatin' Utes had a chance to adjust to the 3,000 screaming fans at the Tucson Convention Center and take a shot, the team found themselves looking up at the scoreboard to a 4-0 deficit.

The No. 6 Icecats came out with a dominating performance on both ends of the ice, taking both games of the weekend series, 16-1 and 11-1.

Utah (9-10-1) didn't even attempt a shot against sophomore goaltender Jason Morgan until seven minutes of the first period had passed Friday night. Saturday night's game had senior goalie Mark Meister turning up a similar performance, as he stopped 15 of 16 shots

UA gave fits to the Utah defense and goaltenders, taking 56 shots on Friday and 64 on Saturday.

The attack of Arizona's forwards proved too wily for Utah to handle. Juniors Marc Harris and Paul Dorn repeatedly weaved through the Skatin' Utes defense, producing shot after shot. Harris continued to find the back of the net by grabbing a hat trick on both nights, ending the weekend with seven goals.

The Icecats came out firing Saturday night as well. Hunter Chernack started with a wrister at 3:16, and Harris followed with a rebound goal to make it 2-0. Another Harris goal one minute later and a goal by freshman Chase Hoyt as the first period expired made it 4-0.

Meister was three minutes away from a shutout when Utah forward Dave Monson found an opening and scored the Ute's only goal.

Arizona saw everyone get into the act, with several defenseman finding the back of the net. Freshman Ryan Roth and junior Larry Hull contributed to cause by scoring their first goals as Icecats.

Icecat fans even saw it fit Friday to give Utah goal tender Jesse Anderson a standing ovation for his effort. Anderson, a sophomore, came in relief of junior Andy Haley during the second period on Friday and made several athletic stops of the Icecats high powered attack.

"We have a pretty good hockey team," Golembiewski said. "We don't want to apologize for the score, or for being a pretty good hockey team."

The American Collegiate Hockey Association rankings came out Thursday night and the Icecats (14-1-2) dropped from No. 5 to No. 6. Arizona received one first place vote.

Next on the schedule for Arizona is a trip up to Tempe Wednesday to take on No. 8 Arizona State. This will be the third game against ASU this season for the Icecats. UA is 1-0-1 against the Ice Devils after it won 7-4 and tied 3-3 during a December series at the Tucson Convention Center.

The next home series is Friday and Saturday when the Saint Louis Billikens come to Tucson. The puck drops for both games at 7:30 p.m. at the Tucson Convention Center.