Several outbreaks of violence resulting in two injuries marred a Homecoming dance in the Chick Evans Field House Saturday night.

University Police were called to the fieldhouse during the dance on three separate occasions, twice for crowd control and once to respond to a fight in the fieldhouse.

Rick Clark, adviser to the NIU chapter of the National Pan-Hellenic Council, which sponsored the dance, said four UPs were working the entrance of the dance, but additional UPs were summoned twice when people began rushing through entrances.

He said in the first instance a “couple hundred individuals” rushed through a door, and UPs were summoned to seal off the area.

In the second instance, he said people were pushing through a door other dance attendees were leaving through. At that time, UPs were called and attempted to disperse the crowd.

Clark said he was “almost trampled” in the second incident when people attempted to enter the dance.

The dance was attended by about 2,000 people and was open to all NIU students. Non-NIU students could attend the dance if they were signed in by an NIU attendee and had a picture ID.

Within the fieldhouse itself Clark said there were “a couple of fights.”

He said, however, by the time he was able to get near the incidents those involved would disperse in different directions, and he was not able to identify them.

Clark said one of the fights resulted in injuries to two individuals.

UP Sgt. Debra Pettit said both individuals were asked to go to Kishwaukee Community Hospital and that no arrests were made relating to the fight.

In an unrelated incident, UPs used oleoresin cap-sicum (mace) to bring a subject who allegedly refused to show a picture ID at the entrance of the dance under control.

Pettit said the subject, Cedric L. Hawkins, 20, 707 Lucinda Ave., was arrested and charged with criminal trespass to state property, resisting a peace officer and disorderly conduct.

She said criminal trespass to state property and resisting a peace officer both are class A misdemeanors which carry penalties of up to one year in jail and fines up to $1,000. Disorderly conduct is a class C misdemeanor with penalties of up to 30 days in jail and fines up to $500.

According to police reports, two officers sustained minor injuries while restraining Hawkins.

In addition to Clark and the four UPs working the entrance, there were 16 student security guards and two graduate advisers working the dance.

Clark said overall NIU students were well-behaved at the dance and he believed the disturbances were caused by “a small group” of non-NIU students.

“We will be discussing what we can do to prevent outbreaks of violence and make the dances as violent-free as possible,” Clark said.

Pettit said the dance should be critiqued to try and find ways to make the dances safer.

Clark, who is also associate director of University Programming and Activities, said UP&A is investigating the incident, but he would not comment on any possible actions UP&A might take.

In an unrelated incident, another fraternity lost its Homecoming dance privileges as a result of an alleged fight at a dance in the Holmes Student Center on Oct. 1.