Penn State lost two of the best players in program history last year in Alisha Glass and Megan Hodge to graduation. They also lost their best returning outside, Darcy Dorton who started on their national championship team last year as a freshman, to an ACL tear over the summer.
They still have a lot of talent and newcomer Deja McClendon looks very good this early in her career, but the loss of Dorton left a big hole in their lineup.
Regarding their streak, it was very impressive, but when you consider that 4 of their players (Glass, Hodge, Harmotto, and Fawcett) are already playing with the US National team, it becomes more understandable. I also think Arielle Wilson has a very good shot at making the National team as well.