OMAHA, Neb. Augie Garrido's Texas baseball teams are always built on pitching and defense, and the Longhorns sure are showing it at the College World Series.

Nathan Thornhill and John Curti s combined for Texas' second straight shutout, and the Longhorns forced a second-bracket final against Vanderbilt with a 4-0 victory Friday.

The Longhorns (46-20) Bryan Holaday Jersey and Commodores (48-20) will meet again Saturday, with the winner Jeff Locke Jersey advancing to the best-of-three finals against Virginia or Mi si sippi. Those teams played a bracket final Friday night.

For the second game in a row, Texas pitchers didn't allow a runner past second base. The Longhorns have held opponents scorele s 19 straight innings and have given up four runs in their four games in Omaha.

Thornhill left after the eighth inning, having thrown 131 pitches on an 88-degree afternoon against a Vanderbilt team that was set on going deep into counts.

"It was a dominating performance," Garrido said. "I do think they were trying to run his pitch count up because of the heat to get him out of the game. He has the Lewis Brinson Jersey kind of command where he can capitalize on something like that."

Thornhill said he didn't let the Commodores' approach bother him.

"I wasn't too surprised," he said. "They're probably looking for their pitch because they are good hitters, and if they're going to take, I'm going to try to get ahead and Neil Walker Jersey throw my pitches, and that's what happened today."

Texas scored twice in each of the first two innings to lead 4-0, with a couple of the runs cro sing the plate as a result of quirky plays. Thornhill took it from there, with Curtis pitching a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

The Longhorns are batting Sandy Alcantara Jersey just .198 at the CWS, but with the pitching staff operating as it is, no one in burnt orange is worried.

Chad Hollingsworth and Travis Duke held UC Irvine scorele s on four hits Wednesday, and Thornhill (9-3) allowed only six singles while leading Texas to its 13th shutout Jose Urena Jersey of the season.

Parker French (7-5), who gave up one run in 7 1-3 innings against Louisville on Monday, will go to the mound against Vanderbilt on Saturday. The Commodores will start Carson Fulmer (7-1), who got the win in their CWS opener against Louisville.