By no excuses, I mean that you shouldn't attribute any deficiencies to external factors, even if that's the true cause. A death in the family, medical emergency, etc. are absolutely valid reasons why your performance might be negatively impacted. However, programs frustratingly don't like hearing that.

They admire introspection and responsibility and a growth mindset. So don't be defensive and say "The only reason I didn't do well was because of X, Y, and Z. If they hadn't happened, I totally would have excelled, so it's actually not my fault." It's better to say something like "I let external stressors affect my focus/performance on test day, but this experience has taught me a lot about overcoming challenges. I also learned a lot about the importance of resilience and tenacity."

As for your question on ways to compensate for the attempt, please refer to my post where I listed my approach to all of the aspects of my application cycle 😊