I'm glad I was at the Rutgers /Stony Brook game which was a happy ending in front of a very hostile crowd.The bottom line is that the womens team needs to defeat opponents that is perceived inferior to them especially at home.The womens team used to dominate at home but now no game is considered a sure win.Its a sad commentary on how fast times change when top tier recruiting disappears.
Actually, defeat opponents that are perceived (and are, in theory) inferior to them, home and away.
What made RU great (in the day) was that we virtually always beat the teams we should beat, and the style of play made it possible to steal games from teams we were not better than. See our UConn victories and that week of upsets we pulled as examples.
Few of our games this season were against any teams that we shouldn't have beaten (Duke is having a heck of a year, that would have been an upset).
I also agree with your reasoning that the recruiting is a major factor.