Potty Training while we work during the day, HELP!?

So obviously they say it's not healthy to leave your puppy inside it's crate for more than a few hours, but we would have to leave him in there at 7am, I can come home @ noon to let him out, and than back in again until 530ish or so. We tried today to put him in the crate, I came home @ noon, and he had peed & pooped inside. They saw dogs won't soil where they sleep...nobody met my puppy. He's 13 weeks. We tried last week to baby gate him into an area of the Kitchen, he made his messes on the kitchen floor. Are the areas too big, is this why he keeps going? I'm worried because we are gone for a long period of time during the day which is a better way to keep him confined, kitchen area or crate. How do we prevent him from going to the bathroom if we keep him in the kitchen w/a baby gate? Do we need to make a really small area? No blankets? No food/water? HELP!