Wayland knows full well the offensive firepower Scituate possesses.

The Warriors witnessed it a year ago.

Wayland traveled to Scituate for a Division 4 opening round contest last fall and got hit with a second-quarter avalanche. Before the Warriors knew it, they were walking off the field at the half trailing 40-14.

“We’ve talked about it all week,” said Wayland coach Scott Parseghian, whose team gets another crack at Scituate tonight in a quarterfinal contest. “It was 7-7, then 14-14 then they got a blocked punt and an onside kick and that was it.

“We were able to battle back to within a score but we ran out of time (Scituate prevailed 47-36). Losing Mekhi Walker to an injury before that game really hurt us a great deal.”

Scituate has rolled through the competition so far aside from a last-second win against Foxboro in the opener. Head coach Herb Devine knows Wayland will present some challenges and credited the Warriors for not folding their tents last year.

“We watched the film and they just kept coming back and coming back,” Devine said. “Coach Parseghian does a great job with them, they are a physical football team who doesn’t quit. They have a lot of kids who have been there for three years and the two running backs, Michael Caulfield and Max Dresens, are very good downhill runners.”

In last year’s game, Jackson Belsan was nearly perfect for Scituate, completing 13-of-17 passes for 266 yards and five touchdowns. Belsan graduated but Jonny Donovan has stepped in and guided an offense which scored at least 40 points in eight straight games. Standout receiver Lawson Foley and running back Willy Robinson have given defensive coordinators nightmares.

“Scituate is a great team, they are undefeated and in everyone’s top 10 for a reason,” Parseghian said. “I think for us, the start is absolutely important and if we can keep it close I think it might give us a slight advantage. They really haven’t been in a game since Foxboro whereas we had to come back to beat Bedford and Burlington last week.”

Another game in Div. 4 which could be interesting is upstart Canton traveling to defending champion Duxbury. Fresh off an upset win at Hingham in a Div. 3 opener, Walpole takes its roadshow to Billerica to face the Indians, while Mansfield hosts Dartmouth.

Fairhaven running back Justin Marques is two touchdowns away from Ryan Izzo’s state record of 101 and will look to get there Friday night when the Blue Devils host Lynnfield in a Div. 6 state quarterfinal.

There is a lot of intrigue in each of the four Div. 1 state quarterfinal contests. St. John’s Prep will look to slow down Methuen star running back Shane Eason, while Xaverian’s secondary will be tested by Leominster quarterback Osiris Lopez. BC High hosts a very talented Springfield Central squad, while rapidly improving Central Catholic will travel to Needham.

Five Independent School League teams will seek NEPSAC Bowl glory Saturday as they compete for prestigious titles. Belmont Hill hosts Worcester Academy in the Bob Souza Bowl, while Dexter Southfield visits Tabor Academy in the Kevin Macdonald Bowl.

One of the marquee matchup is the battle of unbeatens St. Paul and BB&N in the John Papas Bowl. That contest will be played at Boston College with a 1 p.m. kickoff.

Noble and Greenough hosts Kingswood Oxford in the John Mackay Bowl, while Middlesex takes on Berkshire in the Joe Lang Bowl.