Tyler Allen knows his window is closing.

There’s not really a pressing individual goal, no primping for a college scout. Allen knows that after his time in Oktaha baseball lies a trade, most likely in the heat and air business.

“I’ve had a couple of offers, but I’m going that way,” Allen said, referring to his blue-collar sights.

Meanwhile, he’s hoping for a piece of gold as the Tigers seek the Class 2A baseball state title.

“My most important goal is to win a state championship,” he said. “We’ve been close and we know where we’ve come up short.”

Allen is hitting .361 with three doubles and two home runs through the first 13 games of the year. On the mound he’s 2-0 with a 1.67 ERA and one save.  When he’s not pitching, he’s locked in at third base, the same duties he had last spring where he hit .350 with 10 doubles, two home runs and 33 RBIs while going 7-1 with a 1.80 ERA.

Last fall he returned late in the season from a fracture of his non-throwing arm and lit a charge on a squad that had double-digit losses yet still made its seventh fall state tournament in the last eight.

“Tyler is a player you love to coach,” said Oktaha coach Kevin Rodden. “He is the ultimate team guy. All he wants to do is win.” Allen is basically a piece in a collection of players with that kind of mindset. It’s what makes the Tiger tradition what it is.

“I wouldn’t say there’s one person that inspires all of us but we all kind of have the same goal of a state championship, so we all get behind each other and push each other the best we can,” he said.

He reflected that there is one player who helped set his course back in his freshman year.

“Harley Schaffer was a guy who was always looking for extra reps, doing extra stuff, just taking one more swing, one more ground ball, and he stood out then for me as someone always pushing the rest of us to do that,” Allen said.

The game of baseball has taught him life lessons, too. “Never stop working,” he said. “Keep bettering yourself every day.”