Senior shortstop Nate Fassnacht and 2019 graduate utility player Dom D’Alessandro were selected in the 2019 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

Fassnacht and D’Alessandro, drafted to the Philadelphia Phillies and Boston Red Sox, respectively, extended the Colonials’ streak of players drafted to the MLB to five years. Fassnacht became the fifth highest draft pick in GW history at No. 240.

Growing up 70 miles outside Philadelphia in Ephrata, PA., Fassnacht was drafted to his hometown team. He would forfeit his final year of collegiate eligibility if he signs with the Phillies.

Fassnacht had a breakout junior season, earning All-American honors and Atlantic 10 Player of the Year. He tied for first in the league in runs batted (60) and tied a single-season program record with 23 doubles.

D’Alessandro joined Fassnacht on the third day of the draft. He was selected at No. 677 overall by the Red Sox, the defending World Series champions.

D’Alessandro transferred to GW during the 2018 season as a junior. He led the league during his final year with the program in hits (88), on-base percentage (.506), slugging percentage (.668) and batting average (.423).

His .423 batting average was the second best average in the NCAA and the highest the A-10 had seen since 2013. D’Alessandro’s performance earned him a spot on the First All-Conference Team as a first baseman and the Second All-Conference Team as a designated hitter, making him the first player in the A-10 to earn two All-Conference honors.

Fassnacht and D’Alessandro provided the squad with a dynamic offense that stood out in the A-10. The duo ranked in the top-five in hits, RBI, batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and home runs.

The Phillies had not drafted a Colonial in 59 years when the team took Sam Knisley in 1960. D’Alessandro is the first Colonial drafted to the Red Sox in 31 years after the squad selected catcher John Flaherty in 1988.