One match at a time is how the Penn State Nittany Lions will approach the remainder of their 2011-2012 wrestling season.

As each member begins to come into his own and new members join the starting line-up, the Lion grapplers appear poised to start a momentous push -- a push similar to what took them to a 2011 national championship a year ago.

"It's like a snowball starting atop a mountain at the beginning of the season. And now it's really starting to pick up speed and gain momentum," said Quentin Wright, a 184-pound defending national champ.

"The lightweights are starting to come on board, and even me -- myself -- am starting to come on board," he said. "And the pieces are starting to fall together and everything is connecting, and it's really exciting to see that."

An early-season loss to perennial contender Minnesota forced many of the team's starters, including Wright and heavyweight Cameron Wade, to see where their weaknesses were.

But the team received a recent surge from its lightweights, with the new-year addition of Frank Martelloti at 133 pounds and a seemingly inspired Bryan Pearsall at 141 pounds. Together with true freshman Nico Megaludis, they help give Penn State an extremely solid line-up, top to bottom.

"It felt pretty good to get out there; it's everything I thought it would be," Martellotti said of his first match back against Michigan State's Brandon Fifield.

Martellotti was taken down first, but used an early-third-period escape to take a 6-5 lead. A riding-time point gave him a 7-5 victory.

Although Penn State's team philosophy is to score first and never wrestle from behind, Martellotti said the early takedown helped get his mind right for the rest of the match.

"I was kind of flat coming out, and that first takedown kind of woke me up. But I kept my head in the match after that," he said. "And that's all thanks to more experience and just being in the room, getting more mat time in here, and the fighting attitude that all the coaches teach us."

Looking forward, Penn State will head back on the road with a Thursday flight to Chicago before bussing to Evanston, Ill., to take on the 17th-ranked Northwestern Wildcats (4-0) at 8 p.m. at Welsh-Ryan Arena. The Wildcats should present a pretty even test for the Lions, as 125-pounder Levi Mele is ranked seventh in the nation. Jason Welch, an undefeated 157-pounder, is ranked third; 174-pounder Lee Munster is ranked ninth; and heavyweight Mike McMullen is ranked 19th.

"Teams don't change a whole lot from year to year. And any team in the Big 10 is of pretty good quality; there aren't many teams in the Big 10 that aren't in the top 20. So every match, you have to be ready to go," Penn State 165-pounder David Taylor said.

"Northwestern has done well in recruiting the last couple years, and we have to be at our best," Coach Cael Sanderson said.

Notes

• Megaludis was disqualified from his match Sunday at Michigan State because of an illegal throw as he was attempting a key-lock move. While Megaludis was upset after the match, he and Sanderson both alluded to the positives of not worrying about records and seeding anymore, and just focusing on winning each match and putting himself in the best position possible for the post-season.

• Matt Brown made the trip with Penn State to Battle Creek, and Sanderson said he expects Brown to accompany the team as much as possible, citing his positive nature around the team and mat.

• Frank Molinaro was in early for an extended workout session as he tries to cut weight to get back in a comfortable zone under 149 pounds. He alluded to the fact that a few of Penn State's wrestlers had weight issues over the trip to the Scuffle and Michigan State, saying: "We are used to everything being perfect, practice facilities and whatnot, but now we just have to get back in the room and get focused and ready to go."

Related coverage

• StateCollege.com's Penn State wrestling page