Half Marathon winners Matt Gillette and Olivia Hoeing (from left to right)
Lehigh Valley natives Matt Gillette and Olivia Hoeing capture 2025 St. Luke’s Half Marathon titles in 41st running of Lehigh Valley’s most beloved distance race
ALLENTOWN, Pa. (April 27, 2025) – In distance running, it doesn’t get much closer than this.
After 13 miles of running, Matt Gillette and Tudor Moldovan entered J. Birney Crum Stadium less than a second apart. Gillette pulled away in the final 300 meters for a gutsy three-second victory in 1:07:20. It was the 2009 Parkland High School graduate’s first St. Luke’s Half Marathon crown and redemption after having to withdraw with an injury at mile 10 in 2014, the last time he entered the race.
Olivia Hoeing, 25, a 2020 Salisbury High School alumnus – won the women’s race in 1:26:32, her first St. Luke’s Half Marathon victory. She bested runner-up Riley Stauffer, 21, Allentown, by exactly one minute on a cool, cloudy and breezy morning.
Gillette’s and Moldovan’s sub-1:08 times were aided by the cooler temperatures and their shoulder-to-shoulder proximity throughout the race. “The competition definitely made this a faster race,” said Gillette, 33. “We were together the whole race. Without the competition, I would have been alone and wouldn’t have pushed myself in the middle miles or closed that hard.”
Hoeing, a DeSales University graduate student, said she was running in a pack containing other female competitors until she hit the Lehigh Parkway section of the course at about mile 6.5. Growing up in Allentown and Salisbury Township, she said felt at comfortable on the Parkway’s gravel trails and was able to pull away. “I love the Parkway, it’s my home,” she said. “At that point, I knew we were nearing the end of the race and I realized that there was a chance I could get to the front of the pack. It’s a little bit of a home-field advantage.”
The 2024 St. Luke’s Half Marathon and companion 5k saw over 1,900 entrants racing through Allentown’s streets and parks. Both races started at 18th and Linden streets near William Allen High School and ended at J. Birney Crum Stadium. Sundays’ races were preceded on Saturday by the St. Luke’s Youth Run, which saw more than 850 children aged 3-14 running in Lehigh Parkway.
“The competition all weekend showed us the true spirit of running, whether you’re neck-and-neck with a fellow runner or just pushing yourself beyond what you thought was possible,” said Leslie Billowitch, co-race director and president of the Lehigh Valley Road Runners, which produces the fully volunteer-run event each April. “Today, every runner has a reason to celebrate.”
The 2025 event, the 41st running of the half marathon, marks the 15th year of title sponsorship for St. Luke’s University Health Network. The event has raised over $800,000 to promote running and fitness programs for youth and adults in the greater Lehigh Valley. “We have an amazing running community here,” Billowitch said. “With the support of St. Luke’s, we’re grateful that we can give back to the sport that gives us so much.”
Top 5 males
Matt Gillette, 33, Allentown, Pa., 1:07:20
Tudor Moldovan, 40, Allentown, PA, 1:07:23
Ryan James, 27, Clifton Heights, N.J., 1:09:23
Trevor Conde, 35, Bethlehem, PA, 1:11:26
Adam Kurtz, 25, Center Valley, PA, 1:16:15
Top 5 females
Olivia Hoeing, 25, Allentown, Pa., 1:26:32
Riley Stauffer, 21, Allentown, Pa., 1:27:32
Lauren Cancelliere, 33, Nazareth, Pa., 1:29:02
Molly Breidenbaugh, 29, Bethlehem, Pa., 1:29:44
Maria Davis, 30, Bethlehem, Pa., 1:32:07
Complete St. Luke’s Half Marathon results: https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/11383#resultSetId-545077
Complete St. Luke’s Half Marathon awards: https://d368g9lw5ileu7.cloudfront.net/races/results_crml3py07gnwmkyolxnfveyxzcex.txt
A field of 515 racers took part in the St. Luke’s 5K. Danny Lyons, 16, Easton, Pa., won the men’s race in 17:32. Andrea Stevko, 31, Northampton, Pa., was the top female in 19:16.
Men’s 5k winners
Danny Lyons, 16, Easton, Pa., 17:32
Mark Ayres, 40, Quakertown, Pa., 18:44
Adalberto Torres, 49, Allentown, Pa., 18:53
Women’s 5k winners:
Andrea Stevko, 31, Northampton, Pa., 19:16
Maraleen Shields, 46, Allentown, Pa., 20:58
Liliana Michalska, 13, Easton, Pa., 21:17
St. Luke’s 5k overall results: https://runsignup.com/Race/Results/11383#resultSetId-545098
St. Luke’s 5k awards: https://d368g9lw5ileu7.cloudfront.net/races/results_ijbummuuprqksgqvyughjwu1bu0y.txt
One of the oldest half marathons in the country, the St. Luke’s Half Marathon had its origin in 1977 with a full marathon organized by the Lehigh Valley Athletic Association, a predecessor to the LVRR. It was switched to a half marathon in 1984 and has been run continuously every spring except for a canceled race in 1996 and COVID-19 cancellations in 2020 and 2021.
Information & images provided to TVL by:
Michael Drabenstott
