Any coach who’s been around as long as Brad Barclay brings the same kind of demeanor into any big game. But, it’s hard to believe there’s any lack of confidence from the veteran coach prior to Thursday’s regional tournament matchup.

Reaching the regional leg of the high school baseball tournament for the first time in 37 years was a goal Barclay had been aiming for at the start of the 2017-18 season. Now, things get interesting.

Coming off a grinding, 1-0 victory in nine innings against Indian Valley, the No. 2 seed, Barclay is putting forth one overarching message.

“No excuses,” he said to his team prior to Tuesday evening’s practice. “If we tell you something you should be doing, there’s a reason. There’s a method to our madness. We’re done with the excuses.”

For a team reaching their first regional tournament game in nearly four decades, it’s an interesting thought that there’s more to improve upon. But Barclay feels his team has occasionally looked for reasons why something did not go in their favor, rather than a solution to the issue at hand.

It’s a problem he said happened earlier in the season, but was corrected quickly. Now, with the games holding more importance, he and the rest of the coaching staff are looking to ensure no more slip-ups occur.

Playing perfect baseball is difficult, but it’s something John Glenn will need to aim for against an opponent as formidable as Steubenville. Led by long-time coach Fred Hetherington and Ohio State commit/outfielder Alec Taylor, Barclay said his team is well aware of what they’re up against Thursday.

“The very first thing is they’re well coached,” he said. “Coach Hetherington has been there a while and they’re well coached. They’ve been in this position a couple times. I mean, they’ve won 25 division titles compared to our two. So they’ve been in this position and they have some good senior leadership.”

Barclay pointed out the stout defensive presence of Steubenville in the middle of the field, with the proverbial cherry on top being Taylor in center. But he was also quick to note how well the Big Red put the ball into play.

With a stout challenge in front of them and a chance to make some history right around the corner, Barclay is showing his confidence in his team by keeping the message simple prior to the first pitch.

“It’s going to be the same thing I tell them all the time,” he said with a smile. “Play hard and have fun.”

First pitch of Thursday’s game is scheduled for 5 p.m. at Bob Wren Stadium at Trautwein Field in Athens.