Kansas University’s Brooke Jones had all but made sure her final game at SuperTarget Field would be a victory Sunday by assisting on two KU goals.

But as the Jayhawks held a 2-1 lead over Iowa State in the final minutes, Jones wanted a goal to close out her career. The senior had the perfect opportunity, but her boot sailed over the crossbar.

“The last one there, uh, yeah, I was trying to shoot down, but it went up,” Jones said after KU’s 2-1 Senior Day victory. “I used to play forward in high school, and I haven’t gotten to play it. So I was really excited to get to go in and play forward.”

The miss didn’t matter because the Jayhawks’ only other senior playing in her final game, Brianna Valento, knocked away a last-second shot by the Cyclones. But Jones’ shot was indicative of the Jayhawks’ second-half struggles Sunday.

“I would almost say we were lucky to come away with a win,” KU coach Mark Francis said. “I think overall we probably deserved it, but we didn’t finish them off the way we should have.”

Kansas’ 1-0 first-half lead, provided by a shot from midfielder Lauren Williams off a Rachel Gilfillan header, evaporated in the 58th minute when Iowa State’s Amy Flores’ blast from 25 yards out went past KU goalie Meghan Miller.

ISU not only had taken control, but also nearly grabbed the lead about seven minutes later. ISU’s Nikki Gamble sliced another shot from 20-plus yards that sailed just over the KU goal.

Kansas  playing without four players, including two seniors, who were suspended violation of team rules  rallied.

Jones drove in from the left side five minutes later, but was tackled by a pair of Cyclones. Kansas was awarded a penalty kick on the play. Gilfillan took the free shot and beat ISU’s goalie Beth Chapman to the left, but her shot bounced off the left post.

Less than six minutes later, the Jayhawks took the lead for good. This time Jones found a wide-open Jessica Smith in the Cyclones’ box. She outjumped Chapman and knocked in a header off the back of her head for what proved to be the game-winner.

“We needed to bury them, and we just didn’t do that,” Francis said. “We could have scored seven or eight goals today. The score reflects it was a closer game than it should have been for us, I thought. We can’t let teams off the hook like that.”

Smith, a freshman from Wichita who has five goals over the past two weekends, left Sunday’s game with an injury to her right knee. Francis said it didn’t look as serious as freshman Caroline Smith’s knee injury, though. Last weekend against Oklahoma, Smith tore her medial collateral ligament.

Jones said the win was rewarding because it was her last game, but also said the Jayhawks were going to have to learn to capitalize with crucial Big 12 games against Texas and Texas A&M next weekend.

“It’s Senior Day, my last home game, I couldn’t ask for anything more,” said Jones, who wasn’t completely satisfied with her team’s play. “We know what we’re capable of and obviously the way we played today isn’t what we’re capable of.”