SCARBOROUGH – There was no need for motivational speeches or inspirational messages.

The lingering disappointment of tournaments past and the empty feeling that has consumed the Scarborough High field hockey team for the better part of a year was more than enough.

“It wasn’t the fact that you needed to say a whole lot,” said Coach Kerry Mariello after the top-ranked Red Storm beat eighth-seeded Thornton Academy 4-0 in a Western Class A quarterfinal Wednesday night.

“They knew what position we were in. They knew last year’s experience and they wanted (to win). They deserved it and from the start they came out to ready to play.”

With the thoughts of last season’s shocking quarterfinal loss to Windham still fresh, Scarborough (15-0) blitzed the Golden Trojans (9-5-1) early.

The Red Storm will take on fourth-seeded Westbrook (11-2-2) in the semifinals at 1 p.m. Saturday at Scarborough.

Westbrook posted a 1-0 victory against fifth-seeded Massabesic in the other regional quarterfinal Wednesday.

“(Thinking about last year) was so motivating,” said Elly Walker, who scored twice for the Red Storm. “The seniors remember that feeling like it was yesterday and we did not want to feel that two years in a row. We decided it wasn’t going to happen again. We knew we had to play the best that we could as a team.”

Scarborough opened the scoring just 3:25 into the game on a goal by Emily Bunting.

Four minutes later the Red Storm scored again when Kristen Murray converted off a corner to make it 2-0.

Then, just past the halfway point of the first half, Walker scored her first of the game, giving the Red Storm a 3-0 lead.

“The quick start was great,” said Walker. “I can’t even think what to say, it was just so amazing.”

The early deficit put the Trojans in an unenviable hole, considering they were up against a team that hasn’t surrendered a goal all season.

Scarborough’s shutout streak wasn’t threatened in the opening half, when the Trojans rarely even ventured over midfield and weren’t able to register a shot on goal.

The trend continued in the second half, when the Trojans again were held without a shot on goal.

Lauren Russell did put together a good run deep into Red Storm territory early in the half, but her cross to the front of the goal was immediately cleared out of harm’s way.

“They are definitely driven and on a mission this year,” said Thornton Coach Lori Smith. “They are a really balanced team. There’s no one real superstar and they have a lot of depth. They just have people with a high level of skill all across the field.

Walker scored the final goal of the game for the Red Storm — her second — with 10 minutes remaining.