CHATSWORTH, Ga. — Nobody has scored more goals for North Murray High School’s boys soccer team than Manuel Palacios, but don’t think that has been his only contribution. His impact on the team goes much further, North Murray coach Matt Chambers says, and it’s the other stuff that makes him so special.

But the goals are pretty spectacular, too.

Palacios became the program’s all-time leader in goals scored when he netted two against Lakeview-Fort Oglethorpe on March 28 to bring his career total to 58. He already held the single-season record, which he set as a sophomore in 2015 with 28 goals. The previous career record of 56 was held by Ismael Cruz, who helped lead North Murray to three region championships in its first four years of existence from 2010-2013.

Cruz had a knack for scoring goals at key moments, but he also excelled in helping his teams find the net. His senior season he scored 24 goals and recorded 12 assists. Chambers says Palacios is made from the same mold.

“He’s so unselfish, he just wants to win,” Chambers said. “He always puts in the work and is always doing what he can to help the team and it isn’t always to score. He’s always been just as happy to set an assist and that has meant a lot to our success.

“This year, his role has been when we need a goal, it’s him. It was him against Sonoraville, it was him against Calhoun. In big games when we’re tired and hurting, he always steps up. (Cruz) did that as well, we called it ‘Cruz time.’”

The comparison to Cruz means a lot to Palacios, who says the elder Mountaineer is someone he has admired for a long time. Being able to break his record carries much significance.

“It means a lot to me because I really looked up to him,” Palacios said. “I used to play with him in a Sunday League team, too. He has really helped me out and taught me a lot of things, so I really looked up to him and wanted to break the record. Now I am going to keep going and try to score even more.”

Every since he was little, Palacios has had a gift. He’s had to work hard to perfect it, but it’s this particular skill that he thinks has allowed him to be successful.

“My ability to sprint and control the ball at the same time,” Palacios said. “I’ve practiced it a lot since I was little, like eight years old. I had coaches that would help me also and every practice I try to work on it a little more.” 

That speed came as a surprise to Chambers, who recalled the first time he saw it when Palacios was a freshman.

“I didn’t know what I had and I put him on the (junior varsity) team and his first game against Coahulla Creek he just took off,” Chambers said. “I had never seen him run like that. He has another gear when it comes to games, in practice he’s just kind of chill most of the time. But from that point he’s never stopped and he’s been a quiet leader.”

Palacios’ breakout season came as a sophomore when he set the single-season record. He took a step back as a junior in finding the net and scored just 15 times, but that had more to do with other players such as Julio Chavez stepping up around him. Chavez had 25 goals to lead the area in 2016, and most of Palacios’ 11 assists contributed to those.

This season Palacios has scored 16 times and once again became the primary weapon for the Mountaineers. But it’s not just the volume that is significant, but also when those goals come.

Palacios scored both North Murray goals in a 2-1 victory over Sonoraville on March 7 and also had the game-winner in a 1-0 win over Calhoun on Friday. Those three goals gave each of those opponents their only losses to date in Region 6-3A, and set the Mountaineers up for their first region title since 2013. North Murray has three region games remaining and needs two wins to secure the top spot.

That would be the first title for Palacios. With that in mind, when asked what his favorite goals he’s scored in his career are, he doesn’t hesitate to list the three winners from this season.

“Those are all number one, it felt great to score against Calhoun and to score the game-winner and it feels great to take the region back,” Palacios said. “We haven’t won the region yet, but hopefully we will. We have a couple games left but if we win those then it’s all ours.”

Chambers shrugged when asked what his favorite memory of Palacios’ career his. Instead, he said he will always recall how special he was, how he always cared about the team and how Palacios always made him say “wow” with some of the ways he was able to find the net.

“There’s too many (good memories) to count,” Chambers said. “I don’t know how he does it sometimes. His body can be turned the wrong way, he can be off balance and you think there’s no way he gets this off, but he puts in the net. He always finds a way to do whatever he needs to help the team. He’s just special.”