Recruiting. I remain convinced that programs generally need at least two good recruiting classes out of four to be decent. Three out of four to be really good. My guess, having not researched or looked at rosters, is that Oberlin nailed a couple good classes and those guys have now graduated. Wittenberg had a similar stretch when I played - they were pretty good in 2006-07, really good (Pool C) in 2008, then fell off the map once the key players graduated.
OWU is another good example. In 2016 and 2017 multiple classes were smaller, with fewer contributions from upper classmen. Results showed that, as did the playing style and quality of play. This year, only two seniors see meaningful minutes, but OWU is getting good contributions from all three other classes. And results and quality of play show that. (Off topic, but results also show a team that hasn't fully matured yet. The loss to JCU and draw against DePauw came from flat performances, and now the team has no margin for error to make the tournament.)
Most programs struggle to get over the hump and consistently recruit strong classes. There's a danger zone where you need better players even than the ones you have, or at least players that are the same level. But you aren't quite good enough to recruit off success (conference champs, consistent NCAAs), and you're too good to recruit on a good chance at early playing time. Most programs go backward at that point. In the NCAC, only OWU and, more recently, Kenyon have managed to recruit at a high enough level to sustain success. Even DePauw has noticeably dropped off the last couple seasons.
OWU is another good example. In 2016 and 2017 multiple classes were smaller, with fewer contributions from upper classmen. Results showed that, as did the playing style and quality of play. This year, only two seniors see meaningful minutes, but OWU is getting good contributions from all three other classes. And results and quality of play show that. (Off topic, but results also show a team that hasn't fully matured yet. The loss to JCU and draw against DePauw came from flat performances, and now the team has no margin for error to make the tournament.)
Most programs struggle to get over the hump and consistently recruit strong classes. There's a danger zone where you need better players even than the ones you have, or at least players that are the same level. But you aren't quite good enough to recruit off success (conference champs, consistent NCAAs), and you're too good to recruit on a good chance at early playing time. Most programs go backward at that point. In the NCAC, only OWU and, more recently, Kenyon have managed to recruit at a high enough level to sustain success. Even DePauw has noticeably dropped off the last couple seasons.