It’s a growing trend. The Northwestern wrestling team jumps out to an early lead and – after showing glimpses of what could be the team’s first Big Ten win in two years – ends up losing the dual.

In five of their last seven meets, the Wildcats (7-11, 0-6 Big Ten) have led their opponents after the first individual matchup, only to end up losing. And Friday’s 23-12 loss to No. 18 Michigan State was no exception.

The Cats jumped out to a 6-0 lead over the Spartans (5-8, 2-3) heading into the third individual matchup. But a major decision for Michigan State over NU freshman Mike Kimberlin sent the Cats on a downward spiral, and they were unable to recover.

Junior John Giacche, ranked No. 16 in the 141-pound weight class, started the meet with a 10-9 decision over Shane Martin. But he said the match didn’t go as planned.

“I was happy that I was scoring points, but at the same time I did a couple of bad things,” the junior said.

Martin scored several reversals on Giacche, keeping the match tight throughout. But the close victory gave him an 11-match winning streak and improved his Big Ten record to 6-0.

Sophomore Josh Ballard defeated Michigan State’s Matt McCarty 4-2 to give the Cats’ the 6-0 lead. The 149-pounder had humble words to say after winning his first conference win of the season.

“I did alright,” Ballard said. “I could have wrestled better, but it was nice to come away with my first Big Ten win.”

NU’s third win came from 165-pound sophomore Ryan Kane. His 6-4 decision over Anton Hall upped his Big Ten record to 5-1, second only to Giacche on the team.

Freshman Tommy Vargas brought home the only other win for the Cats, defeating Scott Pushman 9-3.

But even with the four individual winners, Giacche said the meet disappointed him. Both Ballard and Giacche agreed that the Cats had a good chance of winning heading into the meet.

“After the first five matches, I thought we were going to win the dual,” Ballard said, echoing a sentiment the Cats have expressed several times during the winless conference campaign. “We did well, we just came up a little short.”

Ballard said the team had a couple of bad breaks, adding that the Cats need to wrestle better when they find themselves caught between the mat and an opponent.

Giacche noticed a few more problem areas for NU, adding that the team also has trouble controlling ties and fighting on the top.

“Michigan State did a couple of good things, and we had a problem adjusting,” Giacche said.

But he added that the problems were largely individual and not team-oriented.

“We’ve learned all that we need to know, and now we just need to do some fine-tuning,” Giacche said.

With only two duals left this season, the Cats are looking to improve on their technique before the Big Ten championships at Illinois, to be held March 9-10.

Ballard said the team plans to practice hard the next week in preparation for the end of the regular season, but make sure it’s rested for the Big Ten and NCAA championships.

“The long-term goal is Big Tens and nationals,” Ballard said. “But for right now we’re focusing on the dual meets.”