Two straight third-place finishes may cut it for some bowling teams, but not Vanderbilt. And especially not when the Commodores are No. 1 in the nation.

Looking to get back to their winning ways of last fall, when the Commodores won all three tournaments they entered, the Vanderbilt's top-ranked women's bowling team returns to the lanes this weekend in Baltimore, Md., at the Morgan State Invitational. The tournament will pit the Commodores against some of the other top teams in the country, defending national champion Maryland-Eastern Shore among them.

Despite blowing leads in both tournaments they've entered in 2009 to finish third both times, the Commodores still received 15 of 18 first-place votes by voters from the National Tenpin Coaches Association to maintain their grip on the top spot in the most recent rankings.

"It's always flattering to be ranked No. 1 by your peers," said Vanderbilt coach John Williamson. "But I don't think we're that worried about what other people think about us."

Despite the lack of team success, the Commodores have still displayed impressive performances in 2009. Williamson said his entire team has been bowling strongly, particularly freshman Brittni Hamilton, who won individual titles at both tournaments in January. Also, it was announced last week that junior Josie Earnest was to be named co-female amateur athlete of the year in Tennessee after another stellar campaign in 2008.

However, Earnest believes she and her teammates are capable of far better than they've shown in recent weeks.

"It never sits well with us," Earnest said of not winning tournaments. "We led both tournaments by well over 200 pins going into the bracket, so two third-place finishes were not what we wanted. We're always capable of bowling better. I think the last several tournaments we've felt like we've performed below par and we were still leading by triple digits going into the bracket. I expect exceptional things to happen over these next few tournaments."

"I think the last two tournaments in particular were a learning experience," Williamson said. "We're looking at making some adjustments and trying to focus a little bit better and learn how to finish those tournaments."

Senior Michelle Peloquin said the team has worked on maintaining its momentum when it captures large leads heading into the final days of tournaments.

"We have focused on this in recent practices and I'm anxious to see how we will respond," Peloquin said. "I have confidence that this practice will pay off and we will have improved in this area."

Despite the recent letdowns, Williamson feels the Commodores have not wavered in their self-assurance and that the team is on the brink of snapping out of its recent funk.

"I think overall we feel pretty good about what we're doing," Williamson said.

Not that continuing to come short of victories will be acceptable for the Commodores.

"We've never walked in and expected anything lower than a No. 1 finish, but we're going to focus on the things that put us in a position to win," Earnest said. "It's all about taking care of the things that you can control and letting things fall into place."