Staff photo by Ari Selvey New Ulm Junior Legion’s Paxton Johnson runs for third base during a Junior Upper Midwest Classic baseball game against Hastings Saturday at Johnson Park.

NEW ULM — In their first three games of the Junior Upper Midwest Classic, the New Ulm Junior Legion pitching had allowed just three runs.

That dominance continued into the Pool Championship round on Saturday night.

Miles Castleman scattered five hits and allowed just two sixth-inning runs as the Junior Legion downed Hastings 5-2 at Johnson Park.

Castleman fanned six in the win.

Adam Staves took the loss for Hastings. He was charged with three runs in 3 1/3 innings of work.

Ryler Collins had two hits for New Ulm with Miles Castleman driving in two runs.

The win moves New Ulm to Championship Play on Sunday.

They will play Sleepy Eye at 9 a.m. at Johnson Park in the semifinals.

New Ulm Silver then plays Mankato West at noon at Johnson Park with the winners meeting at approximately 2:45 for the title.

“Miles threw outstanding,” New Ulm Junior Legion head coach Jeff Ferrell said. “He was ahead of batters most of the time — he threw about 90 pitches and about 70 were strikes [only two walks in the game for Castleman]. And we did a great job of playing defense.”

While New Ulm was errorless in the game, Hastings had three errors in the game and all of them cost them runs.

In the first, Paxton Johnson reached on a one-out infield error and promptly stole second. Collins followed with a single.

After two were out, Miles Castleman lined a single to right that plated Johnson for a 1-0 lead.

But Hastings rightfielder Bill Rotty’s throwing error on the play allowed Collins to come around to score.

Johnson’s one out double in the third and a Collins RBI single made it 3-0.

In the fifth New Ulm added a run without a hit when Collins walked, stole second, took third on a Trevan Thordson sacrifice bunt and then scored on a Miles Castleman groundout.

Hastings cut the lead to 4-2 in the top of the sixth, but New Ulm got a run back in the bottom of the inning on a Kaden Stueber single.