Last modified: Tuesday, February 20, 2007 12:36 AM EST GOBIS: Feehan banking upon Roncarati BY PETER GOBIS SUN CHRONICLE STAFF On the soccer field, she may be overshadowed by Jen Leaverton and Mary Effler. On the track, Meg Looney, Katie Barrett, Janelle McNeil might attain more first-place finishes. And on the basketball floor, Danielle Fontaine and Amy Lepley gather most of the attention. But where would the Bishop Feehan High girls' basketball team, 18 wins and all, 15 foes in a row retired by the Shamrocks be without Jenna Roncarati? The sophomore forward might not be the best dribbler or scorer for coach Mike Deady, but Roncarati brings defense, brings rebounding and an innate toughness and court awareness that has enabled the Shamrocks to dismantle every opponent thus far, will likely land Bishop Feehan a No. 1 seed for the MIAA Tournament next week and who knows what thereafter. It's the same on the soccer field for coach Paul Pontes, where Roncarati patrols the central midfield space, as good a transitional player as there is. During the spring, Shamrock track coaches Bob L'Homme and Paul Powell can place her in any of the sprints or any of the jumps. Jenna Roncarati never disappoints. In her first full-fledged season of varsity basketball, Roncarati has had eight double-digit scoring games. our of those in the past six outings - 15 against Bishop Stang, 17 against Somerset, 15 against Coyle-Cassidy, 11 against Duxbury. But, it's not the points that have made her a key spoke in the Shamrock wheel. Roncarati, generally, guards the opponent's best offensive threat, her soccer shut-down skills being utilized. Roncarati, generally, is the Shamrocks' best rebounder too, all those track jumping skills being brought to the forefront. "She's an important part of our success, she's amongst the most athletic players that we've ever had," said Deady. "She's blessed with God-given ability," said Pontes. "She has good instincts, she likes to compete, she's right up there with some of the best." Soccer may be Roncarati's passion, as she began playing in Cumberland, R.I., youth leagues when she was 5 or 6, being a member of the Rhode Island Rage premier team and the Rhode Island Olympic Development team. She has limitless potential on the track because of her speed and stamina from playing soccer and basketball, a pentathlon or decathlon track-athlete for sure. "Soccer definitely helps me in both basketball and track because it builds up my endurance," Roncarati was saying the other day after a typical six-point, nine-rebound outing in a 19-point win at Notre Dame Academy, a double-double in a 26-point win at Duxbury. "I guess I'm kind of fast, but having endurance is the best that you can have." Roncarati played in youth basketball leagues, alongside her indoor soccer schedule. She played on the junior varsity team last year as a rookie, her first season of really being aware of what it takes to succeed on a basketball court. Last summer, she was a member of the Bay State Shamrocks spring and summer hoop team and admittedly, felt better prepared and with a better package of poise to handle varsity competition, not to mention blending in with upperclass-gals and pedigree players. "It was a little awkward for me at first, I was the seventh man," said Roncarati, who worked her way into the starting lineup two weeks into the season. "I was kind of mad at myself too because I got nervous, I didn't do as well as I could." Deady noticed that Roncarati was doing all the dirty work, playing fundamentally sound. "She's an excellent rebounder, she usually guards the best opposing player and she scores well," he said. "To play defense in basketball effectively requires a lot of the same skills that she has from soccer. She's very strong and she's very athletic. "Like many great athletes, she has a sense of what has to be done, she has a great sense of anticipation," he said. "She has that ability to get to that point and do it at a high speed." Just don't ask Roncarati to dribble. A soccer ball, yes. A basketball, well, "that's what I need to improve on, my low post moves, my jump shot," she confessed. With her dad, Bob Roncarati, a former football player at Holy Cross, this Shamrock has become a Crusader about basketball. "This team, we play good defense and we have a lot of good scorers," added Roncarati. "Everyone is contributing, we're not selfish. We don't rely on one specific person." PETER GOBIS can be reached at 508-236-0375 or via e-mail at pgobis@thesunchronicle.com.