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When Harvey senior Peyton Forde ’26 walks on the basketball court at American International College (AIC) in Springfield, Massachusetts, for the first time this fall, she will be joined by the very familiar face of another newbie looking to acclimate herself to the brand-new facilities, staff, and teammates. Peyton’s sister McKensi, two years older, a Harvey 2024 alum, will be experiencing all the same firsts as a new member of the NCAA D II Yellow Jackets women’s basketball team.

The Forde girls were long-time teammates, first in youth leagues, then again at Faith Christian Academy (FCA) in the town of Poughkeepsie where they currently reside, and later at Harvey when their dad, Ricky Forde became the dean of students in the Upper School and his two daughters enrolled —  McKensi as a junior and Peyton as a ninth grader. At FCA, the talented sisters played basketball together starting when McKensi was in seventh grade and Peyton was in fifth. Then, both of them played together as all-league starters on Harvey’s varsity team, helping the Cavaliers win back-to-back Housatonic Valley Athletic League championships in their two years on the floor together in Katonah. 

Shortly after the news of Peyton committing to AIC came word that McKensi would be transferring from Post University in Waterbury, Connecticut, to continue her college basketball career in Springfield, leaving the nest of the Eagles of the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) to swarm with the Yellow Jackets of the Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10). McKensi, who was a high honors student and all-league player in her two years at Harvey, made a name for herself at Post as well, earning a place on the 2025-26 CACC All-Academic Team and serving as a top sub at the “stretch 4” power forward position, a good shooter from the perimeter. In her two years coming off the bench as a super-sub, the 5’ 11” McKensi recorded a 3.2 PPG, and averaged 0.5 assists, 3.1 rebounds, 0.6 steals per game in the minutes she played.

So, how did it all come about that the Forde sisters will be reuniting at AIC?

It started when Peyton, an all-league 5’ 5” point guard and team captain for Harvey, was invited for a campus tour at AIC by Kristen Hutchison, the head women’s basketball coach. “As we always do, we made it a family trip because showing up for our girls has always been part of the journey,” Mr. Forde said.

During the tour, it seemed fate began to enter the picture when Coach Hutchison recognized McKensi from playing against Post University earlier in the season. The coach meeting McKensi on the tour would later prove greatly fortuitous, but more to come on the McKensi story shortly. By the end of the visit, Peyton was offered the opportunity to continue her love for basketball at the collegiate level at AIC.

Back to McKensi. Less than a week after the AIC tour, she made the decision to enter the collegiate transfer portal. “McKensi felt strongly that she needed to explore opportunities beyond Post to find the right fit for her next chapter,” her father explained.

What happened next was nothing short of amazing.

Within 24 hours of entering the portal, five Division III and two Division II programs reached out. Then, just 48 hours later, McKensi received a message from Coach Hutchison requesting a call, and by the end of their conversation, she was offered a spot at AIC. 

Before making her decision, McKensi wanted to make sure Peyton would be OK with her accepting AIC’s offer and with the two sisters playing together again. Mr. Forde recounts, “Without hesitation, and with pure excitement, Peyton said, ‘Of course!’”

Regarding the two Fordes competing together for AIC, Peyton said, “I’m super excited to get to play with my sister again because we’ve always had fun whenever we were on the same team. She’s always been my best friend, so getting this chance to play with her again is truly a blessing from God.”

For her part, McKensi said, “I’m very excited to be able to play with Peyton again. She’s my best friend and my first-ever teammate, so being able to play with her on the court again makes me happy beyond words.”

So, with two years of playing college ball behind her, McKensi can speak from experience and offer her sister some advice on how to handle being a student-athlete on a college team. She said, “The main piece of advice I’d tell her is not to make basketball your whole life. I know that sounds weird, but what I mean by that is don’t let your performance in basketball determine how you feel about yourself and perceive yourself. Basketball has a lot of ups and downs, and if you let how you’re performing each day control you it can really affect you mentally.”

In her studies at AIC, McKensi will major in biology with the goal of one day becoming a heart surgeon. Peyton, an honors student at Harvey, plans to major in physical therapy, a decision she made stemming from an injury she sustained while playing in her first game of rugby for Harvey in the spring of 2025.

Mr. Forde, ever the proud dad, is excited that both his daughters will be attending college at the same time and playing basketball together on the same team once again. “To me,” he said, “it’s the small things that count, and it is somewhat of a dream come true.” 

Having both daughters playing for the same school has its plusses for the parents. Mr. Forde thinks of the money he and his wife, Keisha-Lue, will save on travel expenses and the relief of not having to figure out which game to attend between the two girls. But Mr. Forde put it best from a parent’s perspective, saying, “The most important part of this collegiate journey is the time spent together as a family!”

So, look out, NE-10, here come the Forde sisters!

McKensi Forde '24 while playing at Harvey in her senior year

Petyon Forde '26 playing for Harvey in her senior year