EDMONTON - The defending conference champions Golden Bears suffered their first blemish on Friday night, falling to their cross-town foe MacEwan Griffins 4-3 in overtime at Clare Drake Arena. 

The win is the first ever for MacEwan in Canada West play over Alberta, and their first win over the Bears since September 7, 2007. 

Curtis Roach scored the winner on the powerplay in overtime, clinching the second conference win for the Griffins. Brendan Boyle, Sean Comrie, and Ryley Appelt also scored for the visitors, with Ashton Abel stopping 48 of the 51 Alberta shots he faced in a tremendous performance in the MacEwan net. 

Tyler Preziuso scored twice for Alberta, with captain Matt Fonteyne scoring late in the third. Nick Schneider made 21 saves, suffering his first loss of the season. 

Both of Preziuso's goals came in the first, after Boyle opened the scoring for MacEwan just 1:47 into the first. Preziuso goals, which came just under three minutes apart, gave Alberta a 2-1 lead after 20. 

Comrie scored the lone goal in the second, in a period which saw MacEwan outshoot Alberta 14-12. In a sloppy period filled with turnovers and penalties, Alberta felt the momentum slide towards the vistors. 

The Bears, however, returned to form in the third, outshooting MacEwan 23-4. Despite the ice tilting heavily in their favour, Appelt gave the Griffins a late lead with his first of the season with just over five minutes left in regulation. 

Fonteyne, who finished with a game-high seven shots, found the equalizer three minutes later, forcing OT. 

After Preziuso was sent to the box for hooking in OT, Roach ended the game with a wrist-shot from the point that beat a screened Schneider. 

The Bears and Griffins will meet again tomorrow night at the Downtown Community Arena.