ONALASKA — Throughout the regular season, one of the most common themes has been how much damage Onalaska High School’s Rodrigo Rodriguez has inflicted upon opponents.

Whether it is via the ground game or special teams, the Loggers star has had his fingerprints all over the outcome of eight consecutive victories. Even when Toledo purposefully punted it away to Rodriguez with under 60 seconds left in the first half, he had the last laugh.

And so did Onalaska.

Fueled by three scores from Rodriguez and the fourth shutout in the last five contests from the defensive unit, the Loggers put out a statement to the rest of Class 2B with a dominant 40-0 triumph over the Riverhawks on Friday night at home to claim the C2BL East title.

“Feels amazing,” Rodriguez said. “I know this team is very happy. We knew we were better and we came out and dominated. We had a lot to prove.”

The returning all-league, all-area and all-state back scampered to the end zone from 32, six and 52 yards – all in the first half to build a 24-0 cushion heading into the locker room. The final one proved to be the dagger.

A shanked punt by Toledo gave Onalaska (8-1, 5-0 C2BL East) favorable field position on its own 48-yard line. Rodriguez clapped his hands watching the punt bounce out of bounds.

On the first play from scrimmage, he took one cut and darted his way for six.

“That was a big time play; something special,” Loggers head coach Mazen Saade said. “The best part about that kid, he’s the first one to give credit to his offensive line. The people that came here tonight saw him put on a show.”

Tabbed as No. 3 versus No. 4 in the latest coaches poll from the Washington State Football Coaches Association (WSFCA), it turned one-sided in a hurry.

Riverhawks dual threat quarterback Eli Weeks was pressured all night, on bootlegs and broken plays. Shot passes down the field being hauled in earlier in the season were missed on Friday.

The right-hander finished with 52 passing yards on just eight completions. Linebacker Nick Rushton was the proverbial spy and thanks to interior pressure from the defensive line, registered a couple key second half sacks.

“This was our best defensive performance of the season,” Rushton said. “Everyone played (well).”

Riverhawks head coach Mike Christensen is a firm believer in watching the film before canvassing the full picture, but even on the sideline, felt that his QB was a touch off.

“He was just out of sync, our whole offense was. You have to be able to overcome that,” he said. “They were more physical than us, I got out-coached, they were just a better football team tonight.”

Both sides exchanged turnover on downs and actual turnovers in the first four possessions. Cooper Lawrence’s interception jump started the first scoring drive that featured a double digit yard pass from sophomore Lane Gordon to Rodriguez.

The Loggers wrap up the regular season on a short week trekking to Toutle Lake on Thursday before figuring out who their crossover opponent will be in two weeks.

“To see it come through and make an impact, feels really nice,” Rodriguez said of Gordon’s completed pass to him.

Getting punched in the mouth, figuratively, is something Christensen has had happen throughout his coaching career. Same goes for his assistants.

He believes this group will respond in a positive way.

“That’s when we do our best,” Christensen said. “Sometimes, you just need to get that punch in the mouth. You don’t like to have it in a league-championship opportunity game, but that’s the way it goes sometimes.”

Film review typically releases some hard lessons. When the Loggers lost to Class 1A power Nooksack Valley in Week 1, they knew adjustments needed to be made.

Eight straight wins – one forfeit smothered in there, too – Onalaska has done a lot of learning.

“Our motto in Onalaska football is to keep digging,” Saade said. “When times get tough, we gotta keep digging. Tonight was a great example of us digging. The buzz word now is locked in and I thought our kids were so focused.

“We (have) nothing to lose.”