The finger pointed in one direction Thursday - at himself.
"I obviously did not have them properly prepared, that's entirely my fault," Helias coach Chris Wyrick said after the Crusaders dropped a 9-0 decision to the Rock Bridge Bruins at the American Legion Post 5 Sports Complex. "I did not prepare them to compete against a team that was going to come out and battle from the first pitch to the last pitch.
"I take full responsibility for this, it's all on me."
The first pitch of the game was called a ball to the Rock Bridge leadoff hitter. That was the first of nine straight called balls as the Bruins drew four walks to score a run in the first inning while putting just one ball in play.
The Bruins added two runs in the second on two walks, an error and a double. That was Rock Bridge's lone extra-base hit Thursday.
Rock Bridge took a 6-0 lead with three runs in the third. The Bruins combined four singles with a sacrifice bunt and a suicide squeeze bunt in the inning.
"When you play a team like Rock Bridge that works to get runners over, does the little things, you have to be ready for that and we weren't because I didn't have the team ready for that," Wyrick said.
That was the first of three successful squeeze bunts Thursday for the Bruins.
"We had maybe three guys say something in the dugout and on the field on those plays," Wyrick said. "That's my fault for not having them prepared for the squeeze, I have to do a better job of coaching and getting them ready to play."
Rock Bridge made it 8-0 with two runs in the fourth before plating its final run in the sixth.
Helias had a runner thrown out stealing the first inning and one picked off at second for the final out of the second. The Crusaders used a hit-batter, a walk and an infield single to load the bases with one out in the third before a strikeout and a grounder to the mound ended the threat.
The Crusaders had just two baserunners in the final four innings, both hit by pitches.
"It's my job to make sure we compete," Wyrick said. "It's my job to get that out of them."
Helias had just three hits - consecutive singles by Dylan Hood and Parker Schnieders in the second inning and an infield single by Trevor Austin in the third - against two Rock Bridge pitchers.
Bryce Bond took the loss for the Crusaders, working 1 innings. Dawson Meyer pitched the next 2 innings, while Zach Davidson pitched the fifth and sixth before Jacob Hartman retired Rock Bridge in order in the seventh.
"We're going to get back at it (today) and get ready for Saturday," Wyrick said.
Helias (9-5, ranked No. 7 in Class 4) is back in action Saturday at the Legion Complex. The Crusaders will face Father Tolton at 11 a.m. before squaring off against Lutheran: St. Charles at 3 p.m.