Four Branford student-athletes sign to play college sports

Published 9:45 am Monday, April 16, 2018

BRANFORD — Four different sports were represented when Branford High School student-athletes signed with colleges on Thursday. 

Dylan Kelley (baseball), Carmilla Derringer (cross country), Chloe Linton (softball) and Mary Varga (golf) signed scholarships inside a crowded BHS auditorium.   

“Our athletes are on the upper swing,” said Branford athletic director and head baseball coach Alex O’Quinn. “We’ve got a lot of great kids and our coaches are doing a good job of getting them exposure.”

Kelley, who has played for O’Quinn since eighth grade, signed with South Florida State College. The right-handed pitcher caught the attention of coaches at a showcase event at Indian River Community College in November.

He took a visit to South Florida State in December and then made his commitment in January. For Kelley, Thursday’s signing was a moment he had always imagined.

“This may sound a little corny, but since I was 8 years old, I had a list of my life goals on my bedroom door. One of those goals was to play college baseball,” Kelley said. “I can cross that off now.”

A good fastball with movement has led to big strikeouts numbers for Kelley. In 49 innings pitched during his career at Branford, he has struck out 65. Kelley is 2-0 so far this year with a 4.20 ERA for the Buccaneers, who are 11-4 with three games left in the regular season. 

While Kelley has excelled at his sport for a long time, Derringer’s story is a little different. Derringer, who signed with Florida Gateway College, was more of a late bloomer. 

“I hated running. In my mile for PE I could not get past 13 (minutes),” she said.

That changed in the last two years as Derringer was named Rookie of the Year in her junior season of cross country and MVP as a senior. 

“The last few years that’s all I wanted to do. If I wasn’t running, I was thinking about running,” Derringer said. 

“Coach (KJ) Wingate, coach (Mindy) Sikes and coach (Stefani) Santos all kind of told me to run to have fun. That’s what made me fall in love with it because I didn’t have so much pressure. Then coach CC (Erin Clark) put the pressure on me — like now you have to get the times.”

Derringer has improved her times significantly. When she first started running, her cross country times were around 33 minutes. Now she is down to 26 minutes.

It was actually Linton who encouraged Derringer to run and got her started in cross country. Linton, a shortstop and .379 career hitter at BHS, signed with Queens University of Charlotte in North Carolina.

“I visited several schools, but Queens was home as soon as I stepped on campus,” Linton said. “It means a lot (to sign). I really want younger kids to realize just because you live in a small town doesn’t mean you can’t go anywhere. I’m really happy to represent our school.”

In 76 games with the Bucs, Linton has scored 77 runs and collected 40 RBIs. She’s been one of Branford’s best hitters and also the vocal leader on the infield.   

Varga was a six-year varsity golfer at Branford High after starting in seventh grade. She helped the Buccaneers win three straight district championships during her final three seasons. As a senior, Varga was part of the BHS team that finished second at a regional final to advance to the state tournament. 

She’s shown improvement throughout her career and now shoots in the low 100’s, with her best score a 97. Varga plans to study Computer Information Systems at Webber International University. 

“I visited over Spring Break and I really liked the size of the school and how small it was,” Varga said. “They have a good computer program.”