Maybe it was just a coincidence that Danny Coulombe felt so comfortable on a mound manicured by big league groundskeepers.

Or maybe it was foreshadowing.

The season numbers — 9-0 record, 0.75 ERA, 138 strikeouts — are gaudy enough, but it was the Scottsdale Chaparral left-hander’s dominance on a late April afternoon that exemplified why he is the Tribune’s baseball Player of the Year.

Coulombe threw a complete game and allowed one run in an easy victory over Paradise Valley.

The remarkable thing was how he did it. Twenty-two outs were collected that day, 20 via strikeout.

Paradise Valley’s whole field was redone in the offseason by 48 groundskeepers from various major league clubs and Coulombe noticed.

“I felt really good that day,” Coulombe said. “That mound was very comfortable.”

Coulombe’s repertoire consists of a low-90s fastball, a change-up and one devastating curveball.

When he throws the curve, Coulombe positions his index finger like he would if he were throwing a knuckleball, leading to increased spin and a ball that darts toward the dirt once it nears the strike zone.

Later in the year, Coulombe was given the task of pitching the Firebirds into the state championship in the 4A-I semifinals against a potent Glendale Cactus squad.

He did so, and Chaparral went on to win the title.

“I really didn’t have my best stuff that day,” Coulombe said.

His mediocre stuff stillturned into a complete game in a 6-2 win. He struck out 16 batters.

Coulombe has signed with USC but said he is willing to turn professional if the offer is fair after June’s draft.

Then he can ascend those big-league mounds all the time.

MEMORABLE MOMENTS FROM THE 2008 SEASON

Back on top: After a one-year drought at Chaparral — yes, one year is considered a drought — the Firebirds returned to the peak of 4A-I with an 8-6 championship game victory over Glendale Sandra Day O’Connor. Chaparral has now won five of the past six state titles and seven of 10. The Firebirds had six seniors who will be playing Division I college baseball next season.

Fiesta final: The 5A-I championship game pitted underdog Mesquite vs. pretourney favorite Hamilton. Mesquite pressed Hamilton to the end, forcing the Huskies to score four times in the bottom of the seventh inning to pull out a 6-5 win at Tempe Diablo Stadium and claim the school’s third state title. Hamilton’s potent offense featured a lineup with five .400-plus hitters and the worst of the nine having a .317 average (with 11 home runs).

Respect equals championship: Horizon was intent on not letting Peoria Sunrise Mountain standout Jaff Decker beat the Huskies with his bat. So coach Eric Kibler took the bat out of Decker’s hands by walking him three times in Horizon’s 2-1 victory over the Mustangs at Phoenix Municipal Stadium in the 5A-II title game. Decker hit 17 home runs and batted .580 for the season. Taking his ability to produce runs out of the game was critical in securing the victory — Horizon’s third state title in four years.